Wife of accused Fresno child molester takes plea deal. What's next in sex-abuse case

Jan. 6—The wife of accused Fresno child molester Brent Cox was sentenced Thursday to a year in jail, plus probation, as part of a plea agreement with prosecutors.

Jillian Cox, 38, pleaded no contest in October to willful cruelty to a child. In exchange prosecutor Andrew Janz dropped the remaining charges against her, including lewd or lascivious act with a minor and conspiracy to commit possession of a firearm.

Cox along with her husband Brent and a second woman, who police said is Brent Cox's girlfriend and the mother of the victim, were arrested in early February on suspicion of sexual abuse of a child. Detectives allege Brent Cox groomed the child over a period of several years and abused her sexually with the knowledge of the girlfriend and wife.

Brent Cox is charged with a long list of crimes, including sexual exploitation of a child, continuous sexual abuse of a child and possession of child pornography. If found guilty on all charges, he could be sent to prison for nearly 60 years.

Janz agreed to the plea agreement because Jillian Cox is the least culpable of the three defendants. Janz also intends to use her as a witness in the case against her husband and his girlfriend.

"She was a percipient witness to the ongoing sexual abuse and will be able to corroborate the victim's statements to law enforcement," Janz said.

Jillian Cox's attorney Peter Kapetan argued that his client isn't without guilt, but she shouldn't face the same punishment as the other two defendants.

"She was not an active participant in the actual abuse," Kapetan said. "Her crime is not taking any action to stop it."

Judge David Gottlieb agreed to grant Jillian Cox four years of probation, plus 365 days in the Fresno County Jail. The judge also took into consideration that she has no criminal record. But he also condemned her for not doing more to stop the abuse.

"This was a child that you were spending time with and you saw what was going on," Gottlieb said. "I understand to some extent there may have been an abusive situation regarding Mr. Cox, but that does not excuse what went on here."

Brent Cox and the girlfriend are due back in court on Feb. 9 for a pre-preliminary hearing.

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