Former Lake County deputy admits sex with nanny, 14

A former Lake County sheriff's deputy has pleaded guilty to having sex with a 14-year-old who was working as his nanny, according to the state Attorney General's Office.

Derik Navarro, 39, faces up to three years formal probation and three months in the county jail after pleading guilty Wednesday to one count of unlawful intercourse with a child under the age of 16, said Becca MacLaren, a spokeswoman for the Attorney General's Office. The Lake County District Attorney's Office handed the case to the Attorney General's Office to avoid a possible conflict of interest, officials said.

Navarro is scheduled to be sentenced Jan. 9 in Lake County Superior Court, MacLaren said.

The sexual misconduct occurred in 2005 and 2006, officials said. Navarro was fired in 2007 after five years with the department following an investigation into the allegations. County prosecutors initially charged him with 18 felony counts involving two victims. One was dropped from the case.

The incidents did not take place while Navarro was on duty, Sheriff's officials have said.