Priest Charged with Public Indecency Pleads Guilty to Lesser Charge

Rock River Times
January 5, 2015

http://rockrivertimes.com/2015/01/05/priest-charged-with-public-indecency-pleads-guilty-to-lesser-charge/

Aaron R. Brodeski

Rockford priest Aaron R. Brodeski, 45, charged with two misdemeanor counts of public indecency, has pleaded guilty to a lesser misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct.

The guilty plea was entered in Winnebago County court Friday, Jan. 2. Brodeski was sentenced to two years of court supervision and 30 hours of community service.

Brodeski was charged following a March 27, 2014, incident at Road Ranger Gas Station, 4980 S. Main St., Rockford. Winnebago County Sheriff’s deputies were called to the gas station after receiving a report of a man masturbating in view of a female clerk.

Sheriff’s deputies spoke to a clerk at the station, who said a white male had been inside the business and had exposed himself while in the store and also while parked in a vehicle in the parking lot. Other employees and customers were present at the time of the incident.

Original charges of public indecency were Class A misdemeanors. Those charges were dropped in exchange for Brodeski’s guilty plea. Class A misdemeanors carry a possible sentence of up to a year in jail. Disorderly conduct is a Class C misdemeanor, which carries a maximum sentence of 30 days in jail and two years of probation.

Brodeski was a Catholic priest in the Rockford Diocese assigned to Holy Cross Catholic Church in Batavia, Illinois. He was placed on leave following his arrest. He had been a priest with the Diocese since 1998.