MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – A former Minneapolis Park Police chief pleaded guilty Thursday to three counts of criminal sexual conduct and to possessing child pornography, according to the court documents in Hennepin County.
William Jacobs faces 12 to 18 years in jail, depending on a judge’s decision. He pleaded guilty to three counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct and three counts of possessing child pornography.
Police arrested Jacobs in 2010 after a teenager said Jacobs had abused him for three years at his Deephaven home. Inside Jacob’s home, investigators found nearly 40,000 images of child pornography on CDs and DVDs.
After Jacobs’ arrest, 17 men came forward and accused him of sexually abusing them between 1962 and 1980, when Jacobs was a camp counselor and cop. Those accusations, however, were too old to prosecute.
Jacobs’ guilty plea came on the day his trial regarding the Deephaven teen was set to begin.
Hennepin County Attorney, Mike Freeman, said the victim allowed him to say: “My long nightmare is over.”
Freeman said the nightmare was also over for many other young men. He told reporters there may be 20 to 30 other victims.
“There is no joy in this result,” he said. “But there is resolve. This kind of conduct is simply not acceptable.”
Joe Friedberg, Jacobs’ attorney, said Jacobs is filled with remorse.
“We believe, frankly, that we reached a resolution which is best for everybody,” he said.
