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Man gets 30 years for sex crimes

His family explains his actions by saying he was severely traumatized by his young daughter's accidental drowning.

By JOHN FRANK
Published January 6, 2007

INVERNESS - In February 2005, Jeffrey Michael Hickey's 23-month-old daughter drowned in the family's pool. The state prison guard pulled an all-night shift and fell asleep while watching little Auslinn.

Eight months later, on Oct. 23, authorities say the 25-year-old man had sex with two 16-year-old girls he met through a youth group at the First Baptist Church in Inverness. One of the girls had sex with him again three months later.

On Friday, Hickey's family members and close friends told Circuit Judge Ric Howard how the first tragedy contributed to the next.

It wasn't an excuse but an explanation, they said, to rationalize how the well-regarded, law-abiding officer could make such a horrible decision. Hickey's attorney said a doctor had diagnosed his client with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Five felony sex charges could have put the Inverness man in prison for life. But prosecutors offered Hickey a plea deal in November when the victims didn't want to go to trial. Howard agreed to cap the sentence at 30 years behind bars.

Hickey's family and friends, including Inverness Mayor Bob Plaisted, asked the judge Friday for a lesser sentence so Hickey could get counseling and resume his still-valuable life.

In the end, though, the argument didn't sway Howard. He sentenced Hickey to 30 years in prison, the maximum the plea deal would allow.

"He used the church, the death of his child a year earlier and his position with law enforcement to gain the confidence of my daughter," said the mother of one victim, sobbing as she read from prepared remarks. "I think he wants you to feel sorry for his wife and son. I ask you for justice instead, for the girls."

The other victim's mother wanted Hickey in prison for more than 30 years. "Because the girls don't want to go through that trauma at trial, he's going to get away with this," she said.

The girls' names are being withheld because of the nature of the crime.

Howard carefully investigated the question of whether the death of Hickey's young daughter contributed to his behavior. He asked Hickey's wife, Elizabeth Rollason, 29, how the two episodes were connected.

"I know that what he did was wrong ... but he was not in the right state of mind," she whispered in reply, wiping away tears.

When it was Hickey's turn to speak, he apologized to his family, friends and the victims. He said he never used "his daughter's death as a way out."

"I did something very stupid, but it's not the person I really am," he told the judge. "The one thing I won't do this morning is make excuses for what I've done. There are none."

Howard read his sentence swiftly, noting it could have been much harsher.

"You knew the rules going into this matter," Howard told Hickey. "The state showed you great charity and the victims' families showed you great charity because, if you'd been convicted of these matters, there would have been no hesitation to stand you up and give you a life sentence."

John Frank can be reached at jfrank@sptimes.com or 860-7312.

[Last modified January 5, 2007, 19:51:29]