Trial opens for Lake in the Hills man accused of fondling child

Scott C. Morgan "harmed the spirit of a child," a McHenry County prosecutor said Tuesday as the Lake in the Hills man went on trial on allegations he fondled an 8-year-old girl during a kids sleepover in his home.

Morgan, 41, faces one count of aggravated criminal sexual abuse stemming from the May 9, 2008, incident in which, prosecutors contend, he touched the girl while she was in bed with two other girls.

"This defendant decided to put his hand someplace it should never go," Assistant McHenry County State's Attorney David Johnston said.

Morgan does not deny touching the girl, but said it was accidental and not for sexual gratification, an element that must be proven for a conviction on the Class 2 felony charge.

"The testimony will be that it was a mistake," Morgan attorney Tom Loizzo said.

Both sides agree the touching occurred in the early morning hours of May 9 as three girls slept in a bed in Morgan's home. As the girls were falling asleep sometime between midnight and 1 a.m., Loizzo said, Morgan's daughter asked her father to rub her back. Morgan, the attorney defense attorney said, entered the dark room and complied, only to find out he was caressing another girl.

Morgan, whose trial could end as early as Wednesday afternoon, would face a maximum three to seven years in prison if found guilty.