Ex-Delco pol pleads guilty to sex attack on wife's aide

Harry McDevitt Jr. had a thing for younger nurses, according to Delaware County authorities, particularly those who cared for his handicapped wife in their Norwood home.

McDevitt, 63, the borough's former code-enforcement officer, admitted yesterday to assaulting a 28-year-old caretaker who told police that he had offered her cash for sexual favors and had threatened her with a handgun.

"Your conduct was completely unacceptable, outrageous and very, very serious," Common Pleas Judge Barry C. Dozer said.

"In fact," he added, "quite despicable."

Two other nurses who had worked at McDevitt's house on Winona Avenue came forward with similar allegations after the initial charges were filed against him in 2006. They hadn't contacted police immediately out of concern for McDevitt's wife, according to Deputy District Attorney Michael Galantino.

Galantino had intended to use their testimony in the trial involving the latest victim to demonstrate McDevitt's pattern of engaging in "unlawful, and strikingly similar, sexual conduct with younger adult women," according to court records.

But with the evidence mounting against him, McDevitt pleaded guilty yesterday to one count of aggravated indecent assault, a second-degree felony. He will be required to register as a sex offender under Megan's Law and submit a sample of his DNA.

If McDevitt had gone to trial and was convicted, "the consequences would have been horrendous under the sentencing guidelines," said his attorney, John List.

The victim, a mother of three, said she was satisfied with the sentence. "I'm glad it's over," she said.

Authorities say McDevitt, who also served on Norwood's civil- service commission, preyed on women hired to take care of his wife, who uses a wheelchair.

In the most recent case, McDevitt asked the woman to change a bedroom light bulb, then pulled down her nurse's scrubs while she was standing on a chair, according to the criminal complaint. He later cornered her in the kitchen, brandished a large handgun and offered her $50 for sexual favors, she said.

The woman told police that when she tried to leave, he grabbed her, covered her mouth and sexually assaulted her.

McDevitt's sentencing is scheduled for April, after he undergoes psychological evaluations to determine if he is a sexually violent predator.

Galantino said he would recommend a sentence of nine to 23 months' incarceration, with the first four months served at the county prison and the remainder of the time on house arrest. Upon his release, McDevitt will serve two years' probation.

"This is a step forward," Galantino said. "The defendant admitted responsibility for his conduct."

McDevitt, who no longer serves in any official capacity in Norwood and doesn't have the option of returning, declined to comment yesterday outside the courtroom as authorities led him away. *