August 8, 2014 at 4:57 p.m.
Arbor Vitae man, former Minocqua town employee, convicted of sexual assault
Arbor Vitae man, former Minocqua town employee, convicted of sexual assault
Ronald Morgan, 49, was charged last summer in Marathon County Circuit Court on an allegation that he had sexual contact with a 15-year-old boy.
Jurors found him guilty of three counts of second-degree sexual assault of a child, class-C felonies, and one count of exposing genitals to a child, a class-I felony, according to online court records.
The trial began Monday in Wausau. Morgan did not take the stand, but a video interview of him was played at the trial. Several witnesses testified, including a detective and at least one forensic expert.
The case stems from last August. The victim is related to Morgan and claimed the offense took place at a family gathering in Marathon County. According to a police report, Morgan told law enforcement he had consumed alcohol during the time period in which the incident occurred. He asserted he could not recall committing the assault.
Prosecutors initially charged Morgan with just one count of second-degree sexual assault of a child and later filed additional charges.
Morgan, who pleaded not guilty, faces up to 123 1/2 years in prison and a $310,000 fine. He will be sentenced later this month.
In a related but separate proceeding, Morgan, a former town of Minocqua employee, has claimed the town improperly fired him.
An equal rights officer with the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development ruled in July there was probable cause to believe the town may have violated state law prohibiting employers from firing employees solely based on an arrest.
Morgan filed a complaint in January against the town, where he had been employed as a member of its road crew.
Town officials claim that after they became aware of Morgan's arrest, they conducted an independent investigation and interviewed Morgan, in which he denied the criminal allegations. No recordings or transcripts were made of that interview.
In September, the town sent Morgan official notice of his termination. The notice stated that the termination was based on the belief that Morgan's bond restrictions would not allow him to perform his job duties, and that such restrictions would be in effect indefinitely. Morgan was barred from contacting juveniles as a condition of his bond.
But the state equal rights officer found the town based its investigation purely on information that formed the basis of the criminal charge. Under state law, an investigation must contain information outside of the arrest record, according to the equal rights officer.
An administrative law judge will conduct a hearing in the employment case.
On behalf of the town of Minocqua, Clerk Roben Haggart declined to comment about the verdict citing pending litigation.
Jonathan Anderson may be reached at [email protected].
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