An Arizona jury on Wednesday convicted the co-founder of a border militia group of molesting a 5-year-old girl but acquitted him of more serious sex charges, court officials said.
Christopher Allen Simcox, who co-founded the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps in 2005, was found guilty of two felony counts of child molestation and one felony count of providing obscene material to a minor by the Maricopa County Superior Court jury.
Simcox, 55, was cleared of three felony counts of sexual conduct with a 6-year-old girl, charges that carried mandatory sentences of life in prison.
He faces up to 24 years in prison on each molestation charge at his scheduled July 5 sentencing, prosecutors said.
It was not immediately clear if Simcox would appeal. His advisory lawyer could not be reached for comment following the verdict.
Simcox, who represented himself in court throughout the trial, maintained his innocence against the charges for the alleged incidents in 2012 and 2013. He was arrested by Phoenix police in June 2013.
Prosecutors said Simcox preyed on the 5-year-old girl, who was the friend of one of his daughters, during scheduled parental visits with his children. He also showed the victim explicit films, prosecutors said.
“This young girl had the courage to come forward to stop the abuse and by doing so revealed his predatory behavior,” County Attorney Bill Montgomery said in a statement. “With this verdict we have been able to seek justice for this victim.”
A former kindergarten teacher from California, Simcox helped start the border watch group to highlight what he said was the government's failure to secure the porous southwest border with Mexico.
Its force of housewives, office workers and veterans sat in lawn chairs in southern Arizona, looking for people they suspected of being undocumented migrants and reporting them to the U.S. Border Patrol, until the group disbanded in 2010. That year, Simcox launched a brief, unsuccessful bid against incumbent U.S. Senator John McCain of Arizona in the Republican primary.
#1: Gatlin To: Buckeroo (#0)
Is this is the same Chris Wilcox you strongly supported and "served time" with patrolling the Southern border?
Is this yet another one of many LOST CAUSES you have supported?
Gatlin posted on 2016-06-09 12:35:33 Reply Private Reply
#2: Justified To: Willie Green (#0)
You kinda wonder if progressives are going after non progressives by any means possible to punish them as harshly as possible for defying them?
If this guy is a pervert cut his nuts off and feed it to him!
Justified posted on 2016-06-09 12:56:10 Reply Private Reply
#3: BobCeleste To: Justified (#2)
Correction,
If
thisThese guys are perverts cuthistheir nuts off and feeditthem tohimthem!BobCeleste posted on 2016-06-09 14:46:54 Reply Private Reply
#4: nativist nationalist To: Gatlin (#1)
If he was appropriating Minuteman funds for his personal use, it would be more the case that the Minutemen were supporting him.
nativist nationalist posted on 2016-06-09 17:36:39 Reply Private Reply
#5: buckeroo To: Gatlin (#1)
Fuck off, punk!
buckeroo posted on 2016-06-09 21:13:49 Reply Private Reply
#6: GrandIsland To: buckeroo (#5)
You have no class.
This is just one of the many reasons we aren't equal. We should not treat people equally. We should treat people FAIRLY.
GrandIsland posted on 2016-06-09 21:19:42 Reply Private Reply
#7: buckeroo To: GrandIsland (#6)
I thank the creator for this GREAT divide of consciousness. You add nothing to the world around us other than hot aire.
buckeroo posted on 2016-06-09 21:27:41 Reply Private Reply
#8: GrandIsland To: buckeroo (#7)
Im not the one who preaches the end of the country, dipshit.
Wipe off your chiney chin chin. You have a little Capitslist Eric on it.
GrandIsland posted on 2016-06-09 21:30:34 Reply Private Reply
#9: buckeroo To: GrandIsland (#8)
Yeah, faced with a federal debt of 20Trillion dollars you are singing:
buckeroo posted on 2016-06-09 21:34:10 Reply Private Reply
#10: GrandIsland To: buckeroo (#9)
I don't have Paultard syndrome... and crawl in a corner and die while bitching on a chit chat channel. Douchebag.
GrandIsland posted on 2016-06-09 21:54:12 Reply Private Reply
#11: buckeroo To: GrandIsland (#10)
buckeroo posted on 2016-06-09 21:56:57 Reply Private Reply
#12: GrandIsland To: buckeroo (#11)
GrandIsland posted on 2016-06-09 21:58:27 Reply Private Reply
#13: buckeroo To: GrandIsland (#12)
Since you are an ALL POWERFUL kindergarten cop whose mindset is HELL BENT to destroy this country have you ever asked, "why?" Ever hear about "5 why" for RCCA?
buckeroo posted on 2016-06-09 22:06:35 Reply Private Reply
#14: Gatlin To: buckeroo (#5)
Not on you life ... no way will I let it go.
You made such a big deal of it back then when I was trying to tell you what he was.
You kept after me ... it's your turn now.
You were singing praises about what a wonderful person he was and the great service he was performing.
You fuck off, asshole.
Gatlin posted on 2016-06-09 22:10:20 Reply Private Reply
#15: buckeroo To: Gatlin (#14)
Sure you will as you walk the endless, mindless halls of your Alzheimer's Disease.
buckeroo posted on 2016-06-09 22:13:15 Reply Private Reply