Hockey Coach Who Molested 3 Boys Draws 10-Year Prison Term : Crime: Judge calls Richard Paul Jack of Oak Park a danger to children. Victims’ parents appearing at hearing urge severe punishment.

A former Boy Scouts leader and roller hockey coach in Thousand Oaks who molested three young boys was sentenced Monday to 10 years in prison by a judge who said the defendant represents a danger to other children.

Richard Paul Jack, 37, of Oak Park, hung his head as the parents of two of his victims urged the judge to mete out the maximum punishment of 12 years.

But Superior Court Judge James P. Cloninger gave the bearded defendant a lesser sentence, crediting Jack for pleading guilty and sparing the victims a trial.

Still, Cloninger said he believed that Jack is a pedophile who would likely harm another child if his problem is not dealt with.

“The court believes it is likely Mr. Jack would re-offend based on his past behavior,” the judge said.

Two of the victims attended the hearing, but neither boy addressed the court. One accompanied his mother before the court, as the woman pleaded with the judge to send Jack to prison for a long time.

“Richard was a good friend. We trusted him,” said the woman, choking back tears and clutching her son around his shoulders. “The kids liked him. . . . Nobody wins. There’s no winning, and no losing.”

Added Jack’s attorney, Joe Lax: “There were many people who thought Mr. Jack was a nice guy. But something happened to Mr. Jack.”

Just what happened to Jack, however, was disputed by the two sides of the case.

The defense argued that Jack suffers from an illness and recommended the shortest prison term allowed--seven years--and intensive treatment.

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Reading extensively from psychological reports, Lax noted that Jack began abusing alcohol and narcotics as a teen-ager. Jack, the father of three children, saw his marriage break up in 1989, the attorney said. He also could not stop his landscaping business from going bankrupt, Lax said.

Perhaps more important, Lax argued, Jack was sexually molested by an older neighborhood boy at the age of 9.

But Deputy Dist. Atty. Jacqueline Wise said none of those factors mitigate the damage Jack caused. According to Wise, the former coach first molested a 9-year-old boy in December, 1990.

Police investigated the complaint but were unable to sustain the charge. A year later, Jack sought psychological help. But, according to court records, he changed his mind after a therapist advised him that he would have to report any crimes against children to authorities.

From June through September, 1994, Jack molested two more children. In each case, Wise said, Jack earned the trust of the victim’s parents, then invited the boys to spend the night at his home with his own children.

“They looked to Mr. Jack as a father figure,” Wise said. “They trusted him. They slept in Mr. Jack’s bed.”

She called Jack’s conduct “sick” and accused him of blaming the victims and his business failure as a reason for the assaults.

“It is the defendant to blame, and only the defendant,” Wise declared.

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Even after he was charged, Jack maintained that he only fondled the children, Wise said. In fact, she told the judge, his behavior included digital penetration and oral copulation.

One father told Cloninger that his son, now 12, still fears Jack, who molested the boy in 1990.

“My son has gone through a lot because of this,” the man said. “He’s been in our bed. He’s scared at night, and he fears Richard is going to come after him.”

The boy’s mother also addressed the court.

“This sweet, innocent, wonderful man with the kids, manipulated them,” the mother said. “He manipulated the adults to get to the kids.”

She said her son has been tested twice for the virus that causes AIDS. The results have been negative, she said, but added: “We have a long road to travel.”

The parents praised the police and prosecutors for putting together the case against Jack. One mother said, “The system seems to have worked in this case.”

Jack’s mother and stepfather appeared in court. The mother did not make a statement, but the stepfather told the judge that Jack is trying to overcome his problem.