The second of two suspects accused of drugging and sexually assaulting a child pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 25 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections.
Jessica Speciale, 36, of Wonder Lake, pleaded guilty Thursday to one count of predatory criminal sexual assault and one count of criminal sexual abuse during a McHenry County court hearing Thursday, McHenry County State’s Attorney’s Office officials confirmed.
Speciale was sentenced to 15 years for the predatory criminal sexual assault charge, a Class X felony, officials said, and sentenced to 10 years for the sexual abuse charge.
The two sentences will be carried out consecutively, officials said. She will be required to serve 85 percent before being eligible for parole.
Speciale and co-defendant Jason Reinhard, 39, of Woodstock, were charged in March 2023 with four counts of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child, one count of aggravated criminal sexual assault, two counts of criminal sexual assault, two counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse, and three counts of exploitation.
In February 2025, court records show Reinhard pleaded guilty to one count of predatory criminal sexual assault, a Class X felony, and one count of criminal sexual assault of a child family member, a Class 1 felony. He was also sentenced to 25 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections.
The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) notified the Woodstock Police Department in October 2022 of a report of a sexual assault of a juvenile victim, Woodstock Deputy Police Chief Ray Lanz said in March 2023.
The alleged sex crimes occurred in Woodstock from 2019 to 2021.
“From the time of the initial reporting to the Woodstock Police Department to the present, the juvenile victim had no contact with the suspect, who was identified as Jason L. Reinhard,” Lanz said.
The McHenry County Child Advocacy Center, DCFS, McHenry County State’s Attorney’s Office, and Woodstock Police Department all worked together to investigate the crimes.
A criminal complaint alleged that Speciale coerced the female child, who was under the age of 13, to participate in numerous sexual acts with Reinhard.
Speciale and Reinhard were in a relationship and lived together at the time.
The complaint and prosecutors said Speciale and Reinhard gave the victim a pill, which made her feel delusional, before the child was assaulted by the couple.
The pill was reported to be Xanax, authorities said.
Speciale and Reinhard also engaged in sexual conduct together in front of the victim, the complaint said.
Arrest warrants were issued for Speciale and Reinhard in March 2023.
Reinhard was served with the warrant while he was being held in the McHenry County Jail on charges from different cases.
Speciale was taken into the custody of the McHenry County Jail in June 2024 on the charges, but her court case was sealed from the public.