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Illinois man stabs himself in courtroom after being found guilty of sexually assaulting a minor

This is not the first time Icard was accused of sexual assault of a minor

Mythili Sampathkumar
New York
Thursday 19 July 2018 16:19 BST
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Johnny Icard, 78, stabbed himself in the courtroom after being found guilty of sexual assault
Johnny Icard, 78, stabbed himself in the courtroom after being found guilty of sexual assault

A man in Illinois stabbed himself in the courtroom after he was found guilty of sexual assault of a minor, police said.

Johnny Icard, 78, was sitting alone at a defence table at the Law and Justice Centre in Bloomington, after representing himself at trial.

When the jury handed a guilty verdict for criminal sexual assault, Icard told the judge: "I've got a lot of family affairs to take care of ... I was not expecting this,” before plunging a three-inch folding knife into his abdomen.

He was taken to hospital and is expected to make a full recovery.

McLean County Sheriff Jon Sandage said police are investigating how Icard was able to sneak the knife through the courthouse metal detectors.

“We are reviewing our security procedures and if we find that lax security procedures contributed to this, they will be addressed," Mr Sandage said.

Icard had been free on bond but the nature of the crime meant his bond was revoked.

Father of victim lunges at Larry Nassar in shocking courtroom footage

A woman in the courtroom thought he may have had a firearm, but a police officer near Icard saw it was a knife and attempted to stop him.

Icard faces up to 60 years in prison for abusing a minor on multiple occasions.

His sentencing is expected to take place on 31 August.

Icard’s wife Shirley testified her husband had attempted to take his life in February 2017 as well, just two days after the minor girl had accused him of his crime.

Prosecutors played recordings of Icard’s police interviews during which he said “anything is possible” regarding the accusations, adding: “I do drink so it could have been when I’d been drinking".

This was also not the first time Icard had been accused of sexual assault.

The Pantagraph local newspaper reported Icard had faced similar charges in Michigan over 20 years ago.

Since Icard was defending himself, the young victim had to be questioned by him on the witness stand.

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