Copyright 2004 St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Inc.
St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Missouri)
July 20, 2004 Tuesday Five Star Late Lift Edition

SECTION: METRO; Pg. B01
LENGTH: 668 words
HEADLINE: Lawyer pleads no contest in sex sting
BYLINE: MICHAEL SHAW Of the Post-Dispatch

BODY: Kevin T. Coan, a former official of the St. Louis Election Board, acknowledged in court Monday that he had solicited what he thought was a 14-year-old girl for sex over the Internet in 2001.

Coan avoided jail time with a no-contest plea to the charge -- indecent solicitation of a child. But he probably will not avoid a challenge to his Missouri law license, because the charge is a felony. Coan, 42, of St. Louis, was sentenced to two years of probation by Associate Judge James Hackett of Madison County. According to a prosecutor, Coan "chatted" with an Alton police officer posing as a girl named Michelle in a chat room, offering money to see her naked and perform sexual acts with her.

Coan has been working as a private attorney since he was suspended from the Election Board in March 2001 after his arrest. Such a conviction would call his Missouri law license into question, said Maridee Edwards, the counsel for the office charged by the Missouri Supreme Court with disciplining attorneys.

That office could ask the Missouri Supreme Court to immediately suspend Coan's license, she said. A final order of discipline, ranging from a simple reprimand to disbarment, would follow.

In a 15-minute hearing Monday afternoon, Coan, wearing a dark suit, entered an Alford plea, in which a defendant does not admit guilt but acknowledges the prosecution has enough evidence to convict.

During the hearing, though, Coan agreed to the account of the crime given by assistant state's attorney Susan Jensen.

And Coan apologized for his conduct to Hackett and in a short statement issued through his attorney after the hearing.

"I deeply regret my actions," he told Hackett. "I apologize to the people of Illinois and my family for what I put them through." He declined to comment afterward.

The written statement said Coan "deeply regrets the pain and embarrassment his family has undergone as a result of the thoughtlessness of his conduct on March 1, 2001. Now that this matter is finally behind him, he looks forward to making amends to his family and moving forward with his life."

An official at the Madison County Probation Department said Coan will have to register as a sex offender.

Coan had been the Republican director of the Election Board when he was arrested at an Alton grocery, arriving with his wallet in hand and expecting to meet the girl.

Police had created the imaginary girl's Internet profile using the picture of a real 14-year-old girl who had participated in the police department's Explorers youth program and had voluntarily agreed to have her picture used, Jensen said.

Police were able to determine that Coan looked at the picture as he typed messages. After agreeing to meet, Coan said he would be driving a "nice silver car," would be wearing a suit and "would have cash on him," Jensen said. Police said Coan's picture was also posted on the Internet chat site, and that they recognized him when he entered the store.

Hearings in the case have been delayed numerous times since the charges were filed three years and four months ago.

Madison County State's Attorney William Mudge said in a statement issued shortly after the plea hearing that the postponements came while Coan underwent treatment and counseling on his own.

"Several qualified doctors sent reassuring reports stating that Coan was not likely to reoffend and does not pose a danger to society," it stated.

Mudge added that the two-year probation term was similar to what defendants in other cases have received. The charge carries a prison term of two to five years, with probation as an option. Coan also must undertake court-ordered treatment as part of the plea agreement. He has no prior record.

His attorney, John Rekowski, had moved earlier this year to dismiss the case, contending the methods used by police violate Illinois laws against eavesdropping. He declined to comment on that aspect Monday.

Alton Police have conducted at least a dozen other stings similar to Coan's.


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