CHICAGO – A man accused of sexually assaulting a woman he followed from the Sox 35th Red Line station a year ago has been given probation in exchange for his guilty plea.
According to prosecutors, the victim was riding a train home late on Nov. 24, 2023, after going out and having a few drinks. They said Cameron Jernigan, who did not know the woman, began following her as she walked home from the train station.
Jernigan, 24, repeatedly grabbed the woman’s arm and hand, but she escaped by punching him in the hand and pulling her arm away, prosecutors said. He eventually forced her into a parking lot behind the 3200 block of South Princeton.
Surveillance footage showed Jernigan standing over the woman, exposing his genitals and ordering her to perform a sex act, prosecutors alleged. They said the woman managed to create some space and get up, causing Jernigan to flee. She suffered bruises on her arms, legs, sides and buttocks.
After spending nearly a year in jail awaiting trial, Jernigan has now pleaded guilty to aggravated criminal sexual abuse causing bodily harm and aggravated battery in a public place, court records show.
Judge Stanley Sacks sentenced him to 36 months’ probation and ordered him to register as a sex offender, records show. Jernigan must also submit a DNA sample for inclusion in law enforcement databases.
Prosecutors dropped 19 other felonies in their plea deal, including multiple counts of kidnapping and attempted criminal assault.
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