7am News, Sports and Obits

Latest WGIL news
Click to play or
Right click and "Save Target As" to download
Click for Galesburg, Illinois Forecast
Home - Cancellations - Community Events - Contact Us - Mornings - News - Obituaries - Pictures - Programs - Special Events Audio - Sports - Weather
Spicher Guilty of Sex Crime
A Galesburg resident who's a former elected official in East Galesburg has been found guilty of having improper sexual contact with two teenaged boys.

Knox County Circuit Court Judge James Stewart found 73-year old Leonard Spicher guilty Friday of Aggravated Criminal Sexual Abuse, and ordered a pre-sentence investigation be conducted.

Spicher was arrested July 23rd after a neighbor allegedly caught him in the bedroom of his Bednar Avenue mobile home the night before watching a 15-year old boy perform a sex act on a bed.

The boy testified earlier in the week at the bench trial that both he and his friend had sexual contact that night, in exchange for money.

Spicher testified in his own defense that the two boys woke him up, and ordered them to leave so he could go back to sleep, and that he was woke up again by them when the police arrived.

Stewart said that Spicher's claims of what happened that night were, "pretty preposterous," and that while the testimony of both boys wasn't the best, the testimony of the neighbor who is believed to have seen the acts is.

Spicher was seen telling Knox County Public Defender Jim Harrell he couldn't believe the judge issued the verdict after testimony was over.

A date for sentencing has yet to be set.

Spicher was village president in East Galesburg in the mid-1980's. He unsuccessfully ran for the post two more times in the 1990's.
01 16 09 by Newsroom
News management powered by Xpression News

Click here for the WGIL News Archive

Click here for national news

The following provision applies to all visitors (which shall include persons and representatives of legal entities, whether such representatives are persons or digital engines of a kind that crawls, indexes, scrapes, copies, stores or transmits digital content). By accessing this Web site or digital service, you specifically acknowledge and agree that: (i) Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium; (ii) No Associated Press materials nor any portion thereof may be stored in a computer except for personal and non-commercial use; (iii) The Associated Press will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors or omissions therefrom or in the transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages arising from any of the foregoing; (iv) The Associated Press is an intended third party beneficiary of these terms and conditions and it may exercise all rights and remedies available to it; and (v) The Associated Press reserves the right to audit possible unauthorized commercial use of AP materials or any portion thereof at any time.