JACKSON MAN FOUND GUILTY IN FLASHING INCIDENTS

A Jackson man who allegedly exposed himself to three cashiers at local gas stations was found guilty in a jury trial on Friday.

Leo McElrath IV, 27, was found guilty of three counts of sexual misconduct in connection with the incidents, which occurred last October.

Cashiers who had worked at the three stations testified in Circuit Court that a man in a white sports car with a personalized license plate had pulled up to their drive-throughs wearing nothing but a black trench coat. After making an order, the man opened his coat, the women told the court.

Kimberly Adams of Jackson, who was working at one of the stations, said it was an unpleasant experience. "It's not every day that someone comes and exposes himself to me," she said.

Adams identified McElrath as the man who had exposed himself since they had known each other in high school, she said.

The other two women, Karen Mathena and Beth Delvecio, recalled the man's white Mustang and personalized license plate, although they could not recall exactly what the license plate said.

McElrath's attorney, Al Lowes, questioned Adam's relationship with McElrath's former wife, Debbie Ireland. He suggested that Adams might be cooperating with Ireland to get revenge on McElrath.

McElrath told the court that the only reason that someone would try to give the impression that he had exposed himself would be from a grudge and that the only person that would have a grudge against him would be Ireland.

McElrath's girlfriend, Melanie Riehn, told the jury that she had been with him during the evenings of Oct. 21, Oct. 22 and Oct. 25, when the indecent exposures were supposed to have happened.

Andy Hosmer, a lawyer with the state attorney general's office, questioned Riehn's honesty and memory of events. He suggested the fact that McElrath and she had been dating for over a year influenced her testimony.

Hosmer was appointed to prosecute the case in place of an attorney from the Cape Girardeau County prosecutor's office to avoid any appearance of conflict of interest, said Prosecuting Attorney Morely Swingle.

The trial was before a jury of four women and seven men.

Each of the counts of misdemeanor sexual misconduct are punishable by two months in the county jail and a fine as decided by the court.

Sentencing will be at a later date.