Will County youth volleyball and soccer coach charged with child pornography
A Will County youth volleyball and soccer coach has recently been charged with additional charges related to criminal sexual abuse.
The accused, Darrell Stephenson, was charged last week of molesting a boy aged 12, is now also being held guilty for indulging in child pornography. In all, there are four charges against Stephenson, three related to aggravated child pornography while one
regarding child pornography.
Stephenson was brought in to the authorities on the 13th June with only two charges against him. The bond under which the 24 year old is being held on is worth $750,000.
However, an additional bond worth $150,000 was set up later by a judge of Will County. This was done on the request of the Will County State’s Attorney’s Office. If Stephenson wants to go out on bail before his trail commences, he would have to deposit an
amount of $90,000.
In case Stephenson is proved to be guilty of aggravated child pornography, he would be liable to serve a prison sentence anywhere between three to seven years. Whereas if charges of child pornography are proved against the accused, his serving time would
be anywhere between two to five years.
During the time period 2008-09, Stephenson was acting as a student teacher at Aux Sable Middle School. In the spring of the year 2008, the accused was with the Plainfield High School as a paid assistant boys volleyball coach.
Stephenson was arrested after an investigation that took a whole week to gather evidence. The evidence point to Stephenson being in possession of an external computer hard drive that has stored pornographic material in the form of digital videos as well
digital photographs.
The identity of the boy who was molested is not being revealed and there is some confusion whether the victim was in the soccer team that the guilty was responsible for coaching.
However, in the words of Ken Kaupus, the spokesperson of the Will County Sheriff’s Office, Stephenson had “been in the company of the child on several occasions.”
Stephenson’s court appearance is scheduled to take place on the 5th July.
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