MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Minnesota prosecutor who entered the public eye after he was wounded in a courthouse shooting a year ago has been accused of an improper relationship with a teenage girl.
Cook County Attorney Tim Scannell was ordered by a judge Tuesday to stay away from the girl, now 17, and her parents after the parents sought a restraining order.
In their petition, the parents described Scannell, 46, as a longtime family friend who told them in September that he had fallen in love with the girl. They said he promised to stop communicating with her, but continued to text and call her and send mail and packages.
Scannell was out of the office Thursday, and didn't respond to a phone message or an email seeking comment. His home phone listing rang unanswered.
His attorney, Joe Tamburino, said in a statement that Scannell intends to stay in his job "and trusts that this matter will resolve quickly."
"Mr. Scannell deeply regrets the pain and heartache that this situation has caused the family in question," the statement said. "However, Mr. Scannell has not committed any crime or any act of harassment." The statement also said "no sexual conduct" occurred between the prosecutor and the teen.
In the parents' petition for the restraining order, they wrote that Scannell told them the pair's relationship "became physical over the summer, with 'kissing and touching, but nothing illegal.'"
Scannell became a public figure after he was wounded in a courthouse shooting in Grand Marais in December 2011 by a man he had successfully prosecuted. He went on to testify before state lawmakers in support of a bill to allow county attorneys and assistant attorneys to carry guns on duty if they have a valid permit. The bill passed and was signed into law last spring.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.
Comments (9)
Add commentNothing illegal happend, what
Nothing illegal happend, what about morals does he have any morals this is a prosecutor not to mention the girl is a friends daughter!!!
Creepy. Has this anything to
Creepy. Has this anything to do with the trauma he went trhough with being shot? Not right. He should have a check-up.
I'm
I'm sure he will use the "trauma" as an excuse for his behavior.
P.O.S.
Nan
He is a lawyer, and needs some self defense help.
I still say "creepy".
You know it's bad when...
the Cook county prosecutor has his own attorney. What's next, the Cook county prosecutor's attorney has to hire an attorney?
"“I have spent all my life under a Communist regime, and I will tell you that a society without any objective legal scale is a terrible one indeed. But a society with no other scale but the legal one is not quite worthy of man either.” - Alexander Solzhenitsyn
(iii) the touching by another
(iii) the touching by another of the complainant's intimate parts effected by coercion or by a person in a position of authority, or
(iv) in any of the cases above, the touching of the clothing covering the immediate area of the intimate parts,
(e) the complainant is at least 16 but less than 18 years of age and the actor is more than 48 months older than the complainant and in a position of authority over the complainant. Neither mistake as to the complainant's age nor consent to the act by the complainant is a defense
(f) the actor has a significant relationship to the complainant and the complainant was at least 16 but under 18 years of age at the time of the sexual contact. Neither mistake as to the complainant's age nor consent to the act by the complainant is a defense;
She'll be an adult at 18.
How does she feel about the attention he is giving her? That is not part of the story.
Men are sometimes clueless. Throw the book at him, I say. I doubt this is the only example of poor behavior on his part.
"The restraining order says Scannell and the girl have known each other since she was in third grade, and he had given her guitar lessons, and was her tennis coach."
Just think about the events
Just think about the events that surround this corrupt piece of trash prosecutor. While he is putting a man away for criminal sexual conduct (this was going on before the shooting), he lies to the man about the length of his sentence which leads to the shooting, the prosecutor is committing criminal sexual conduct of his own as a "family mentor" to a minor child.
http://brainerddispatch.com/news/2011-12-16/suspects-lawyer-describes-co...
Why is he still in his position as a public official? Where in the heck is State Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility? Should he not be suspended until an investigation is completed?
Scannell, you think you went through trauma ...
... a year ago? Wait until your present victim reaches 18, discovers the world doesn't revolve around you and dumps your sorry butt for a real adult !! Hasta la vista, baby, LOL !!!