| |
|
Christine Marie Johanson
First
| Previous Picture |
Next Picture |
Last |
Thumbnails
 The
Good
The Bad 
The Uh oh
Teacher-aide sex case widens
Thursday, November 30, 2006 6:50 AM PST
By Janine Manny
The Rainier teacher's assistant accused of raping an eighth-grader
during a six-month relationship also could face charges in Longview.
Longview police have investigated a report that 35-year-old Christine
Marie Johanson brought the boy, 15, to Longview on several occasions
to have sex. Prosecuting Attorney Sue Baur said her office is awaiting
that report before making any decisions.
Across the river in Columbia County, Johanson already faces numerous
charges in connection with the boy. Authorities there learned of the
alleged abuse Sept. 1 after a sexual encounter between the two in the
Neer City Cemetery, south of Rainier, the boy's mother told The Daily
News.
"I knew something was wrong," the boy's mother said. "I just never
dreamed that something like this was going on."
She said her son is in counseling, and she is angry that Johanson was
released without bail, saying there is a double standard because the
alleged sexual abuse involves an older woman and a boy, not an older
man and a young girl.
Johanson, a Rainier High School graduate and married mother of two,
was fired from the Rainier School District Sept. 7 when the
allegations were first raised.
She pleaded not guilty in Columbia County Circuit Court earlier this
month on 26 felony counts. She was booked and released into her
husband's supervision pending trial.
Since the initial investigation began, the boy told Columbia County
officials that he and Johanson traveled to Longview "about nine or 10
times" to have sex at the home of a relative of Johanson, according to
police reports. Johanson's relative was not present when they visited,
the boy told police.
Longview authorities won't comment on what type of charges Johanson
could face here, though the Columbia County report includes
allegations that Johanson and the boy had sex in Longview and that she
bought him wine in Washington.
Columbia County authorities also forwarded the report to the FBI and
the boy's mother said she's been told possible federal kidnapping
charges might apply for allegedly crossing state lines with a minor
for purposes of sex. The Seattle FBI office would not comment on
matter, citing a policy of not confirming or denying possible
investigations.
The boy is now a high school freshman, but he was in eighth grade for
many of the encounters. The Daily News is not identifying him because
he is a minor and an alleged sex crime victim. The paper is not using
his mother's name so as not to identify her son.
A Columbia County police report and interviews with the boy's mother
also revealed several new details in the case, including:
The boy told police Johanson talked about running away with him to
Mexico.
The boy told police that Johanson said she loved him.
Johanson wrote the boy's mother an apology letter.
Johanson -- who worked with the boy daily in her resource room --
would drive the boy home after he was suspended, stopping to have sex
on the way, the boy told police. He said Johanson sometimes told him
in code to get suspended and then would appear as he needed a ride
home. Some of the suspensions were for school dress code violations.
The boy told police Johanson made him a CD with the love song "Every
Time We Touch" on it as well as notes that read "I want you!" "I need
you!"
Police called to cemetery
The boy's mother said she put her son in counseling last spring, even
before she knew about the alleged sexual encounters.
Johanson "had him convinced that nobody liked him except her," the
mother said. "She told him the kids at school didn't like him, the
teachers and school administrators didn't like him and that his
parents didn't care about him."
The boy had become angry and troubled, though the mother and the boy's
stepfather hadn't had trouble with him before, she said.
"I knew he didn't want to be there and the suspensions were his way of
getting out of school," the mother said. "I just didn't know why."
Johanson could not be reached for comment; her telephone number has
been changed to an unlisted number. Her attorney, Steve Petersen of
Rainier, said neither he nor Johanson would be commenting.
Johanson and the boy first met at the Hudson Park Elementary School
resource room where she started working in December of 2005. School
officials say Johanson passed all criminal background checks.
"We followed our hiring policy, but we may be making some changes,"
Rainier School District Superintendent Michael Carter said. "All
employees go through a criminal background check, and Johanson's
fingerprints came back clean."
In Carter's Sept. 7 termination letter to Johanson, she was instructed
to stay off school grounds.
The boy also knew Johanson through the Rainier Community Church of God
youth group, where Johanson volunteered.
The boy told police they started having sex in February, about a month
before both attended a Christian music concert on a church youth group
outing, according to the police report.
The mother said Johanson was caught because of what happened on Sept.
1 after the first Rainier High School football game.
After the game, Johanson offered to take several kids over to Longview
to get something to eat.
They didn't get to Longview. According to the mother, Johanson took
the kids to her house, where she started drinking and crying because
the boy didn't want to see her anymore. The students asked to be taken
home. They drove around for a while, until Johanson pulled over and
let another student, a 14-year-old boy, drive.
He drove to Neer City Cemetery, south of Rainier and stopped the car.
He asked the alleged victim to try and calm Johanson down. The boy and
Johanson walked into the cemetery, leaving the others in the car, the
boy's mother said.
A neighbor of the cemetery could see the car's headlights and called
police to report suspicious activity. A Columbia County deputy arrived
and found the kids waiting in the car and Johanson and the boy in the
cemetery. The mother said she was told by the deputy that her son and
Johanson had sex in the cemetery.
"The parents of those students were called to come pick up their
kids," the mother said. "The parents are sick about the whole thing."
Early in October the boy's mother said she got an apology letter from
Johanson begging for forgiveness, according to the police report. The
letter does not mention the boy or contain any admission of a sexual
relationship. It is signed only "C" but the mother said it is
Johanson's handwriting. The police report said the boy had other notes
from Johanson.
"I'm not supposed to have contact with you, but I can't live like
this," a portion of the apology reads. "This is not who I am. This is
not how my life was supposed to be."
The boy's mother said there is a double standard in this case.
She said she believes that if the suspect was a man and the victim was
a 15-year-old girl, that man would be in jail, or at least not have
been booked and released without bail, as Johanson was after a Nov. 6
grand jury indictment. The charges are 10 counts of third-degree rape,
two counts of third degree sodomy, 12 counts of second-degree sexual
abuse and two counts of furnishing liquor to a minor.
"She is a predator, whether people realize it or not," the mother
said. "What my son did doesn't show he's a man -- he's a victim."
Columbia County deputy district attorney John Berg said for someone
without a record, being booked and released is not unusual -- even for
sexual assault charges -- and that Johanson is on conditional release.
"We are praying for her"
Johanson's next court appearance is a pretrial conference set for Dec.
20.
At the conference the lawyers and the judge will determine if the case
will be plea-bargained or head to a jury trial. Berg said any plea
bargain settlement offer would include jail time.
"If a person doesn't have a record and is convicted of one felony
count, that usually means 30 days in jail and three years of formal
probation with conditions," he said.
After the first conviction, the felon is put into a different
category.
"The more counts she's convicted on, the more serious the sentences
are. For multiple counts, there is the potential for prison time,"
Berg said.
While she awaits a decision, Johanson is no longer attending the
Rainier Community Church of God, but the Rev. Steve Stecker said he is
praying for her.
"This must be a horrendous time for all individuals allegedly involved
and their families, and it causes our hearts to grieve," he said. "We
strive to provide a safe and secure ministry to our community, and
that includes restoration to broken individuals."
Johanson had been a volunteer at the church since 1999.
"We do criminal background checks on all of our volunteers," he said.
"She is not worshipping here at this time, but we are praying for her
and all those involved."
The boy's mother said she has been pushing authorities to follow
through with the investigation and wants Johanson to be held
accountable.
"This woman needs to be stopped," she said. "I can't change what
happened to my son, but I can make sure it doesn't happen to someone
else."
Update:06:43 PM PDT on Wednesday, October 3, 2007
By KGW and kgw.com Staff
A 37-year-old former Rainier teacher's assistant who had sex with an
eighth grader was sentenced to almost one year in jail on Wednesday.
Christine Johanson read an apology in court during which she
said,"There are no excuses for my behavior."
She left the courtroom in tears. Johanson will spend 360 days in the
Columbia County Jail.
Her sentencing revealed new details about the case and included
testimony from the victim's mother.
During the sentencing phase of her trial, which began Wednesday
morning, the 15-year-old victim's mother said Johanson became involved
in every part of her son's life -- school, home and church.
Arlene Keppinger said Johanson even asked if she could go with the
family on their summer vacation.
The mother of a second boy said Johanson befriended her son to make
the victim jealous.
In addition, the victim's therapist, Charlotte Rosen, said the boy
suffered Post Traumatic Stress Disorder as a result of his
relationship with Johanson.
She also talked about the history of social, academic and emotional
problems the boy had before he met Johanson. Rosen explained that sex
offenders often pursue the most vulnerable victims.
Just over a month ago, Johanson pleaded guilty to four counts of rape
after admitting to having sex with a 15-year-old student from the
Rainier Junior/Senior High School.
Background: Johanson crossed state lines to have sex with 8th grader
Johanson worked at Hudson Park Elementary School in Rainier. During
that time, she repeatedly had sex with the student, authorities said.
The two schools share a campus but the school district said Johanson
was never the boy's teacher.
She was fired from the district in September and was ordered to stay
away from the boy and the schools.
Johanson also admitted to having sex with the boy in Cowlitz County.
She was still awaiting sentencing in Washington state.
|
|
