Former Hamilton police chief found guilty

A former chief of the Hamilton Police Department was found guilty Monday of attempted statutory rape in the second degree. James E. Young, 35, of Hamilton, had a non-jury trial before

Caldwell County Circuit Court Judge Brent Elliott.

Elliott heard the case in Clinton County following motions by Young’s attorney, Dana Macoubrie, of Chillicothe, to move the location out of Livingston County and also to change the judge hearing the case. Douglas S. Roberts, Livingston County prosecutor, prosecuted the charge against Young.

Young was arrested by Livingston County Sheriff Steve Cox on Nov. 30, 2001, after Mr. Cox posed as a 15-year-old girl in a chat room over the Internet and agreed to meet with Mr. Young in Chillicothe for the purpose of engaging in sexual activity.

The “girl” was actually Cox. Sheriff Cox has arrested several potential sex criminals in a proactive Internet sting operation.

A change of venue moved the trial from Livingston County, where Young was charged, to Clinton County.

Mr. Elliott also ordered a pre-sentence investigation by the Missouri Department of Probation and Parole. Sentencing was scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on Feb. 27 in Clinton County.

Young faces a maximum of five years in the Missouri Department of Corrections. He is free on a $5,000 bond.

After leaving his position as Hamilton police chief, Young had worked as a corrections officer at the Missouri Department of Corrections in Cameron, prior to his arrest.