Case of 11 child assault charges goes to trial

A jury trial is set to begin Tuesday in Solano County Superior Court for a 61-year- old Fairfield man accused of multiple child sexual assault charges, some of them dating back to the 1990s.

Richard McCormick Sr., who was scheduled to appear Thursday for a trial management conference in Department 11, will return there, Judge William J. Pendergast’s courtroom, at 9 a.m. Friday for the trial in the Justice Center in Fairfield.

McCormick faces 11 counts of assault against children who were 10 or younger at the time.

What happened

In early October 2018, his attorney at the time, Christina A. DiEdoardo, argued for bail reduction, but Pendergast denied her request. She also asked for house arrest and supervision rather than continued Solano County Jail custody. The judge also denied those requests, citing her client’s danger to the community, McCormick’s criminal history, and the seriousness of the charges, which, Pendergast noted, were the kind that create “psychological damage” to victims.

Over the years, McCormick has been represented by six different attorneys, most recently, according to court records, by Scott A. Tibbedeaux.

Where it stands

While court records show the allegations stretch back a considerable amount of time, the most recent stems from July 2018. McCormick was arrested Aug. 30, 2018, by Fairfield police.

The Solano County District Attorney filed a complaint against McCormick on Sept. 4. 2018. His bail was set at $4.5 million during a September 2018 proceeding in Commissioner Robert Q. Warshawsky’s courtroom in the Hall of Justice in Fairfield.

Among the accusations McCormick faces are six counts of sex acts with a child under 10; two counts of sex assault on a child by force or fear; and two counts of aggravated sex assault of a child by penetration with a foreign object.

Most of the charges against McCormick, if found guilty, carry life sentences.