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	Park Hill Day Care Worker Pleads Guilty in Sex Assault Case By Kim Ngan Nguyen Thedenverchannel May 9, 2011 http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/27825631/detail.html DENVER -- A 19-year-old worker at a Park Hill day care center, who was accused of improperly touching and licking preschool children last August, reached a plea agreement with prosecutors Monday. Benjamin Janicki pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree assault and two counts of attempted sex assault on a child -- both felonies. He'd originally been charged with several counts of sexual assault. "What Mr. Janicki did was despicable," said Rev. John Thompson, pastor of Park Hill United Methodist Church. "But to not extend to him the grace of God is inconsistent with who we are." Thompson said most church members are willing to live with the plea bargain. "We are willing to live with that and again get back to the business of loving and caring for children." Janicki could face 20 to 40 years in prison, plus 10 years of intensive supervised probation, when he is sentenced on July 22. He must also register as a sex offender when he is released. Five New Victims Added To Original Charges Janicki worked as a summer staffer at Park Hill United Methodist Church Children's Center. Monday's plea lists the original four victims in addition to five new victims, said Denver District Attorney Communications Director Lynn Kimbrough. "This plea spares nine young children the trauma of having to testify," Kimbrough said. Kimbrough said the plea deal was "designed in part to bring justice to our victims, help spare them the trauma of having to testify publicly at a trial and insure that there was a level of accountability for this defendant." Even though the sexual assault charges were dropped, "by pleading guilty to first-degree assault, which is a count which we included because it is a crime of violence, will insure that whatever he's sentenced to in July, he'll have to serve 75 percent of that prison sentence," Kimbrough said. She said the district attorney spoke with the victims' family members of the victims before crafting the plea agreement. "This is a complex case because of the number of victims," Kimbrough said. If he had been found guilty of sex assault on a child, he could have been sentenced to life in prison. On Monday, if the judge asked if he made the plea decision on his own, Janicki hesitated for a moment and then said, "I guess I will answer that yes." Girl Told Investigators 'Ben' Tickled Her As She Lay On Mat A girl also told investigators that the teacher called "Ben" would "tickle" the children as they lay on their mats and "it did not feel good," the affidavit said. One girl told Janicki "to stop and he did not," the affidavit said. The victim told her parents about the abuse on Aug. 3. Janicki was arrested the next day. State authorities temporarily closed the day care center after Janicki allegedly admitted to sexually abusing as many as 13 children there, according to a report issued by the Colorado Department of Human Services. The state agency investigated what it described as "serious and significant supervision issues." Before the arrest, 125 families used the center. During the five-week closure, the center enacted new rules for staff members. They can no longer use cell phones at work and must be engaged with children at all times. "We made several changes," Thompson said. "We have a new director, new staff and a new emphasis on training. Nothing is taken for granted." Thompson said he has not spoken to Janicki since he was arrested. "We wish for him a chance to be redeemed," the pastor said. "After all, that's who we are and that's what we're about." Thompson noted that Janicki passed a background test when he was hired. "If we had known beforehand what we know now, it would have been quite different." A member of the Park Hill community, who declined to give her name, told 7NEWS the entire incident was a tragedy. "I feel for his family," she said, "and for all the people who care about him. But I care for the children here more. I'm sorry, but they were innocent victims in all this. I'm glad they don't have to testify. That's all I have to say."
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