Prosecutor gets 18 months for raping teen boy

Cris Barrish | (Wilmington, Del.) News-Journal

Former Delaware criminal prosecutor Daniel Simmons made a tearful apology Tuesday to his teenage rape victim, ex-colleagues and the "people of Delaware" before a judge sentenced him to 18 months in prison for raping the 16-year-old boy during a threesome with a college student last year.

Simmons, 35, had pleaded guilty in late March to one count of fourth-degree rape, punishable by up to 15 years in prison, under a plea deal that saw his former employer, the Attorney General's Office, drop the other three fourth-degree rape counts.

Simmons must serve six months in home confinement after his prison term ends, and then two years of probation, Superior Court Judge William L. Witham Jr. said during the 30-minute hearing.

Simmons' crime involved a three-way tryst in March 2014 at his home in Pike Creek. The sex acts occurred after Simmons allegedly told 24-year-old New York University student Mathew T. Coogan of his desire to have sex with a younger person, specifically a high school-age boy.

The crime carries no minimum sentence, and sentencing guidelines called for up to 22 months in prison because Simmons accepted responsibility.

A public furor arose last year when it was revealed in a civil lawsuit that du Pont family heir Robert Richards IV had received probation in 2009 for a fourth-degree rape case involving his 3-year-old daughter.

In that case, his attorney had argued Richards would "not fare well" in prison – an observation Judge Jan R. Jurden listed as a mitigator in her sentence order, leading to online petitions for her ouster. Jurden is now president judge of Superior Court. The prosecutor in that case didn't object to probation as long as Richards sought treatment at an expensive psychiatric clinic in Boston, though records revealed Richards never did get treatment there.

A 2014 News Journal analysis of 15 defendants convicted of a single count of fourth-degree rape since 2008 – and who like Richards and Simmons had no prior criminal record – found that only Richards avoided any time behind bars.

Ten were sentenced to prison – from two weeks to four years – or their pending deportation was noted at sentencing. Two spent time in jail after not posting bail and received credit for time served when the judge sentenced them. Two spent one day in jail before making bail. One defendant, like Richards, avoided any time behind bars.

In the Simmons case – the first high-profile fourth-degree rape case since disclosure of the Richards sentence – prosecutor Peggy Marshall sought a prison term "above the guidelines" during Tuesday's hearing. Marshall noted Simmons was more than twice the victim's age, and saw him "as an object."

Simmons was represented by Eugene J. Maurer, who also was Richards' lawyer. On Tuesday, Maurer told Judge Witham his client realized some prison was time was appropriate for the crime.

Maurer asked that prison time be minimal, saying his client cooperated, is undergoing therapy and is paying a steep price with the loss of a profession he cherished. Anything beyond a short stint behind bars, Maurer said, "would be punitive and mean spirited."

Maurer also noted that what Simmons did is legal in "many, many states." In Delaware, it is illegal to have consensual sex with someone who is 16 or 17 once you turn 30.

'Unhealthy pursuit of sex'

Simmons broke down in tears as he addressed the judge and recounted a life where he tried to suppress his homosexuality and live as a born-again Christian and be attracted to women.

"I was lonely, isolated and ashamed," he said.

He said he was a virgin until age 28 and afterward "felt I had missed out on a decade of sexuality" that he tried to make up with physical encounters.

"My unhealthy pursuit of sex caused me to make some horrible choices," Simmons said,. "My perception of sex was terribly skewed."

Such a state of mind led him to the threesome with the boy, Simmons said. He stressed that the boy wasn't forced to participate but Simmons apologized for putting him in a compromising situation.

Simmons's voice cracked and he cried openly when he spoke about violating the public trust.

"I apologize to the people of Delaware," he said, sobbing,. "It was a great pleasure to serve you all as a deputy attorney general for seven and a half years. I deeply regret the terrible decision that abruptly ended that service."

In pronouncing his sentence, Witham told Simmons he had "betrayed the public trust" and noted that even though the sex with the teenager was consensual, the "vulnerability of the victim" was an aggravating factor.

Witham sentenced Simmons to 10 years in prison, but suspended all but 18 months. The judge also said he will review the sentence after one year, leaving open the possibility that he could release Simmons at that time.

Simmons also must register as a Tier II sex offender and have no contact with the victim or alleged co-conspirator Coogan.

Simmons, hired in 2006, resigned a few days after his May 2014 arrest. He was disbarred last month.

Coogan was charged with sexual solicitation of a child and second-degree conspiracy for aiding Simmons in the rape. Coogan was not charged with rape because he is under 30. Coogan's trial is set for July 13.