Twitter posts send man to prison in St. Charles County case
ST. CHARLES COUNTY • Posts to the Twitter social networking site the day after a former Fort Zumwalt West High School assistant coach was placed on probation for a sex offense have landed him in prison.
Reginald P. Hicks Jr., 25, formerly of Lake Saint Louis, pleaded guilty Dec. 3 on nine counts of statutory sodomy and two counts of statutory rape and was placed on probation. He admitted having sex with a 16-year-old girl in November 2009.
His probation conditions prohibited posts on MySpace, Facebook or any websites used by children younger than 18. He was not to access the Internet from any cell phone or use a computer without approval from his probation officer.
But after the hearing, Hicks continued to post to a Twitter account under the name "CoachHicks19," prosecutors said. O'Fallon, Mo., police detectives found the posts, and prosecutors filed a motion on Dec. 10 to revoke Hicks' probation.
In a few tweets from Dec. 4, Hicks was upset with his treatment in court. One entry, filed with the court, said: "White guy before me got the 'You've got a bright future ahead of you' speech. I got the 'you aint (expletive)' speech. #BlatantRacism"
On Thursday, Circuit Judge Ted House, who had followed the terms of a plea agreement in placing Hicks on probation, revoked his probation and sentenced him to seven years in prison, Prosecutor Jack Banas said.
"He actually went out and did the opposite of what he was told not to do," Banas said.
Matt Fry, Hicks' attorney, said he is considering a challenge to the probation revocation. House denied a motion Fry filed that said the probation conditions violated Hicks' First Amendment rights.
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