Troubling tales of child porn, ‘weird fetishes’ and drug use surround former Redlands High School drama teacher
By JOE NELSON | San Bernardino Sun
The first signs of suspicion came in October 2017 when a custodian heard noises while cleaning Redlands High School’s Clock Auditorium, home to the school’s theater department, and found drama teacher Joel Koonce hiding in the attic, among the props and costumes.
The custodian then went downstairs and noticed an exit door ajar. He stepped outside and encountered a surprised teenage girl, who said she left her jacket inside the auditorium and asked if she could retrieve it. When he followed the girl inside, she abruptly said the jacket wasn’t there and left.
Suspecting a connection between Koonce and the girl, the custodian reported the incident to Principal Kate Pearn, who, given past concerns involving the teacher, notified police.
Thus began a sequence of events that spawned three separate police investigations spanning 13 months that ultimately led to Koonce’s arrest on Nov. 8 at Ontario High School on suspicion of sexually abusing or molesting four teenage girls. Koonce has been working off and on as a substitute teacher at Ontario High since February, Chaffey Joint Union High School District Superintendent Mathew Holton said.
Koonce charged
Koonce, 27, of La Verne, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to 15 felony charges during his arraignment via closed-circuit video in San Bernardino Superior Court, where his bail was set at $500,000. He appeared in a green jumpsuit, indicating he has been isolated from the jail’s general population. Authorities considered Koonce such a danger to the community that bail initially was denied prior to his arraignment.
Reached by telephone Friday, Koonce’s attorney, Samuel E. Tyre, declined to comment.
Koonce will return to court Tuesday, Nov. 20, for a pretrial hearing. Among other counts, he faces charges of oral copulation with a person under the age of 18, unlawful sexual intercourse, child molesting, sexual penetration by a foreign object, distributing or showing pornography to a minor, sodomy of a person under the age of 18 and sexual exploitation of a child.
Teaching history
Before he was hired at Ontario High, Holton said, Koonce was fingerprinted with the Department of Justice and there was no indication of any wrongdoing at any of his previous places of employment. “Nor were there any known concerns during the time he subbed in the district,” Holton said in an email.
Redlands High School campus.
Redlands Unified had hired Koonce as a drama teacher in September 2016, when he was 26 years old. Job performance issues surfaced in July 2017 that had nothing to do with sexual misconduct, and then, three months later, the custodian reported the incident involving Koonce and the girl to school officials. That girl has not been identified.
Given previous concerns, Koonce was suspended, and then forced to resign. He was released from his contract in November 2017, said Redlands Unified spokeswoman MaryRone Shell.
Sex, drugs and video
According to police reports filed in San Bernardino Superior Court, detectives investigated Koonce following the encounter in the campus auditorium and then again in August 2018. However, his alleged victims either did not come forward or, when they did, denied any inappropriate relationships with Koonce.
But last month, one of the girls finally came forward, which led police to a second alleged victim. Attorney Morgan Stewart, who is representing four of the girls in a potential civil case, contacted police and provided investigators with a USB drive containing pornographic still images and video of Koonce engaged in three-way sex with two of of the girls, who were both 16, in March 2018. Koonce had used one of the girl’s mobile phones to take the photos and shoot the video.
One of the girls told investigators she and Koonce had sex dozens of times, and that her best friend had joined them in the three-way sex at Koonce’s home, where they consumed alcohol and smoked marijuana.
Expecting his wife to return home, Koonce drove the two girls to a nearby Chick-fil-A restaurant in the car they used to drive to his home. He bought them food then walked home, leaving the girls sitting in the car in the parking lot until they were sober enough to drive home.
Koonce allegedly later sent one of the victims the pornographic photos and video he shot via Dropbox.
“Stoner” with fetishes
According to police reports, Koonce quickly earned a reputation as a flirtatious, hip drama teacher, grooming selected students for sex, including the one girl he had sex with 40 to 50 times in the school theater, spotlight booth, costume room, green room and in his office. He was described as a “stoner” who often taught class “red-eyed,” under the influence of marijuana, and kept bongs and other drug paraphernalia stashed in the theater and costume room.
Koonce, according to one of his alleged victims, had a fetish for “12-year-old girls, pregnant women and transgender boys,” and liked his alleged victim to role-play during sex, having her call him “daddy.” He also liked the girl to play the Hermione Granger character from the Harry Potter series.
He also told the girl he had sex with an underage girl while working at a summer camp in Texas, Koonce’s home state. He said he was fired from the camp.
And, apparently, police were not called.
Koonce would also drive the girl in his truck to the San Bernardino National Forest to have sex in his truck, telling her he hoped someone would see them and record them on video. He hoped to find the video on a pornographic website, he told her.
The girl who first came forward said she had sex with Koonce at his home and at her home — in her room, her sister’s room, on the couch, and in her parents’ bed.
One of girls traumatized
One of Koonce’s alleged victims — who did not have sex with him — told police she was so traumatized by what happened to her she no longer attends Redlands High School, suffers from anxiety and is home-schooled.
Koonce, she said, often flirted with her, telling her how beautiful she was and that she had a nice body. He also told her: “I can’t wait to show you all the cool things I’m into after you graduate.”
Though she wasn’t intimate with Koonce, other students believed they were having sex because of how he treated her.
In addition to his work in the field of education, Koonce previously worked at Disneyland as a pageant helper, dressing up as various Disney characters, according to Disney officials. They didn’t specifically say which characters Koonce portrayed, but did say he was employed only a “brief period of time.”
History of sex abuse
Koonce’s arrest marks the third teacher at Redlands Unified to be arrested on sex abuse allegations involving students in the past five years.
Former Redlands High School special-education teacher and golf coach Kevin Patrick Kirkland, suspected of preying on girls at the school for 10 years before his April 2016 arrest, was convicted in June 2017 of sexually abusing four students. He served 13 months in jail.
In July 2013, Citrus Valley High School English teacher and soccer coach Laura Whitehurst was arrested (8th story on link) after it was learned she bore the child of one of her students she was long suspected of having sexual relations with. Whitehurst was convicted of sexually abusing three students during her seven-year career in the school district. She served six months in jail.
Stewart’s Irvine law firm, Manly, Stewart & Finaldi, represented victims of Kirkland and Whitehurst in civil litigation, landing a $6 million settlement in the Whitehurst case in August 2016 and a $15.7 million settlement in the Kirkland litigation in August. The latter settlement included two other lawsuits against former Redlands High School teachers accused of having sex with students.
Man hunted by cops for ‘raping 16-month-old toddler leaving it with severe injuries’ after he fled
Police have released several photos of Simon Porter, who's been added to Tennessee's Top Ten Most Wanted list
By Nicola Stow
COPS are hunting for a man accused of raping and severely injuring a baby boy in Tennessee.
Simon Porter, 33, is believed to have fled during a police probe after telling his wife he was scared he'd be arrested.
Investigators were called in after doctors at the Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville treated the 16-month-old child for injuries, reports WKRN.
It's understood Porter was then named as a suspect.
Lieutenant Blake Grooms of Lawrenceburg Police told the news channel that the little boy was hurt "to the point of permanent damage for the rest of his life."
Speaking about Porter's attempt to flee, Grooms added: "According to his wife, he took off and did not tell her where he was going. The last thing he told her [was] he was scared he was about to be arrested."
Porter is described as 5ft 9in, with red hair and hazel eyes. A reward of $3,500 (£2,725) is now being offered for information on his whereabouts.
Alabama Police arrest Tennessee Rape suspect
By: Jim Segina SCOTTSBORO, Ala. - The suspect in the rape of a young child in Lawrenceburg, TN who had been added to TBI's Top Ten Most Wanted list has been captured in Scottsboro.
Scottsboro Police Detective Lt. Zackie Gant tells WZDX that Simon Dean Porter was arrested walking along Alabama Highway 79 near the foot of Skyline Mountain, or near the 15000 block after a resident recognized him and called police.
Lt. Gant says Porter was taken into custody without incident and that Lawernceburg Police are on their way to Scottsboro to take him back to Tennesee.
‘Slap on the wrist’: Drug dealer who raped dying schoolgirl gets less than 3 yrs in jail
Varela pleaded guilty to second-degree manslaughter, third-degree rape, and unlawful disposal of remains of Alyssa Noceda last February. According to case documents, the 20-year-old, who was known to use and sell drugs, invited the teenage victim to a house party where he offered her narcotics.
After Noceda snorted a “large line of Percs” [painkillers], he offered her a “dab” of liquid marijuana, at which point the 18-year-old collapsed unconscious. But instead of calling for help or administering aid, Varela raped the high school student.
When he woke up the next morning, Noceda was dead. As if nothing had happened, Varela got dressed and went to work, where he bragged about the ordeal to a coworker, who notified the police. When authorities arrived at Varela’s mobile home they discovered the body with her legs broken to fit in a crate. Authorities also discovered that Varela tried to use Noceda's finger to gain access to her phone to post messages that would give the impression that she had run away from home.
“It’s a joke,” the victim's mother Gina Pierson, told a local news outlet after the judgment on Thursday, noting that she intends to fight the verdict and demand a life sentence for the killer. “Usually people who do stuff like this don’t get away with a slap on the wrist.”
“You might as well let him walk free with that kind of time,” Noceda’s aunt, Rachelle Palmer added.
Man rapes 7-year-old girl weeks after
getting out of prison for another rape
by The Associated PressWICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas man has been sentenced to life in prison for raping a 7-year-old girl in a stranger's apartment six weeks after he was freed from prison for another rape.
The attack happened in June 2017 while the victim was spending the night at a friend's condo in Wichita. Prosecutors say Breitenbach quietly sneaked in, choked her into unconsciousness and sexually assaulted her.
The girl, now 9, described the attack as "scary" in a video that was played before the sentence was imposed. District Attorney Marc Bennett gave her a fist bump before she left the courtroom surrounded by family.
Wisconsin Man Arrested For
Child Sexual Assault At NCES
By KEN KRALL A Tomahawk man is facing serious felony charges after a student at a Rhinelander school reported a sexual assault.
The Oneida County Sheriff's Office School Resource Officer reported a student at Northwoods Community Elementary School had reported the alleged assault.
The man is a contracted employee of a janitorial firm.
The incident is said to have happened Tuesday and Iliopoulos appeared in Oneida County Circuit Court Wednesday afternoon. Judge Michael Bloom set a $50,000 cash bond.
Convicted sex offender charged with sex abuse
of woman with disabilities
By: Jenn Gardiner FARMINGTON, Utah (ABC4 News) – A convicted sex offender is accused of sexually abusing a woman with disabilities.
According to charging documents, the incident happened in June when Stephens was helping the mom of the 18-year-old victim with some work around their house. The victim’s mom told police Stephens was aware that her daughter had an intellectual disability because they had discussions about it.
When the two were alone at the house, the victim told police Stephens took her into a bedroom and asked her “if she could keep secrets” before he sexually assaulted her.
A search of court records also shows Stephens was found guilty of gross lewdness in July 1992 and ordered to complete an in-patient treatment in Washington State. Stephens was later convicted of Lewdness involving a child in 1997 where he was placed on probation that was later revoked when he was found guilty of second-degree felony sexual abuse of a child in Feb 2000. He was then sentenced to one to 15 years at the Utah State Prison and released in 2001.
Wow! with that track record he got out of Utah State after the minimum sentence. Obviously, he was a changed man.... pfft!
If you or someone you know needs help, call the toll-free Statewide 24-hour Sexual Violence Crisis and Information Hotline at Rape & Sexual Assault Crisis Line at 1-888-421-1100. Click here for a list of Rape Crisis Resources in Utah.
Idaho Falls man sentenced to rider for
sexual abuse of 9-year-old girl
By BRENNEN KAUFFMAN bkauffman@postregister.com
An Idaho Falls man was sentenced to a retained jurisdiction program after pleading guilty to sexually assaulting a 9-year-old girl.
According to the sheriff’s office report, the victim told her mother and the police that Jenkins had touched her under her clothing on five or six occasions and that many of the incidents had started as tickling.
At Monday’s sentencing hearing, both counsels and the judge thanked Jenkins for confessing to the charges and cooperating with the police during the investigation, which prevented the victim from having to testify in court at any point during the case.
“Were that confession not to happen, this case takes on a much different look and a much different tone,” county Prosecutor Daniel Clark said during the hearing.
Retained jurisdiction is where the defendant serves a short prison term while completing certain programs to help rehabilitate themselves. After completing the program and serving up to a year in jail, the court could choose to give the defendant probation instead of finishing their sentence. Judge Dane Watkins declared that the potential jail time that Jenkins faced was four years of fixed prison time with the potential for 16 more.
“What I’m asking for is more time and more information before I am prepared to release you into the community. I expect you to do well if you maintain the same approach that you have when cooperating with law enforcement,” Watkins said.
During the sentencing, Jenkins said he was ashamed of what he had done and that he would accept whatever sentence the court issued in his case.
Jenkins originally agreed to a plea deal that included a prison sentence, but he and his defense attorney eventually decided to request probation in court. Defense attorney Curtis Smith argued that his client’s cooperation with the police and the lesser number of incidents and victims compared to other abuse cases made him a candidate for probation.
Clark and the state responded that no case involving the sexual abuse of a child should result in a sentence without some amount of prison time. They also claimed that some of the incidents appeared to be premeditated and could have been grooming behavior for more severe abuse in the future.
The court also discussed the upcoming deportation trial for Jenkins, a permanent resident of the United States but a New Zealand citizen. He will be held in prison next year during his deportation hearings regardless of the sentence given during this case.
Idaho couple charged for kidnapping, raping teen
By JOHNATHAN HOGAN jhogan@postregister.com
A Lemhi County couple is facing multiple felony charges after they reportedly kidnapped a 15-year-old girl and forced her to perform sex acts with them.
Joshua Stemen, 39, and Valerie Hatfield, 26, were first arraigned in Lemhi County's magistrate court on Nov. 1. They were both bound over to district court Tuesday.The couple has been charged with lewd conduct with a minor child, kidnapping in the first degree, misdemeanor possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. Stemen was charged with an additional count of lewd conduct with a minor.
An affidavit by the Lemhi County Sheriff's Office states the victim underwent an examination by a sexual assault nurse examiner. She told investigators that Stemen raped her on Oct. 29, then forced her to perform sex acts on Hatfield.
The reports do not detail how or when the defendants kidnapped the victim. A first-degree charge means the state is accusing the couple of kidnapping the victim with the intention of sexually abusing her.
Lewd conduct with a minor and first-degree kidnapping are both punishable with up to life in prison. The misdemeanors are punishable with up to a year in jail.
Both defendants have pre-trial conferences scheduled for 9 a.m. Feb. 21 in Lemhi County Courthouse.
Illinois man with 'diaper fetish' sentenced
for child sex abuse
By: Joe Astrouski EFFINGHAM, Ill. (WAND)- The man accused of sexually abusing a 12-year-old by touching her and making her take off her clothes and wear a diaper has been sentenced to twelve years in prison.
Investigators said the abuse happened from May to August 2015 in Effingham. They said they began investigating after the victim posted about the abuse on social media. Officials said McKinney admitted to having a “diaper fetish” and wearing diapers to calm himself.
In October, a jury found McKinney guilty of criminal sexual assault.
On Tuesday, a judge sentenced McKinney to twelve years in prison followed by three years of supervised release. McKinney will receive credit for 184 days already served in jail, according to online court records.
Former South Dakota Tribal Official
Convicted of Child Sexual Abuse
Anndrea AndersonYANKTON, S.D. (AP) – A former Yankton Sioux tribal official has been convicted of child sexual abuse over a span of more than a decade.
The U.S. attorney’s office says 55-year-old Quentin Bruguier used fear or force to engage in sexual acts with children between 1992 and 2016. He was recently convicted of 15 counts of sexual abuse offenses involving children.
Bruguier faces up to life in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for next Feb. 11.
Sex Offender Assaulted Child After
Probation For First Crime - Gets 74 yrs
By Lanning Taliaferro, Patch Staff CORTLANDT, NY — A Westchester County judge has sentenced Verplanck resident Kenneth Brody to 74 years in state prison for the sexual assault of a child. At the time of the crime, Brody was a registered Level 2 Sex Offender, having been convicted in 1992 of first-degree sex abuse.
The investigation revealed Brody subjected the child to multiple acts of sexual conduct over the course of years, starting when the child was 7 years old and continuing until the child was 13.
According to the New York State Sex Offender registry, Brody's first victim was an 8-year-old boy in Greenburgh. His sentence was five years probation.
He completed his sentence on the first assault in 1998, some years before meeting the most recent victim, Westchester County District Attorney Anthony A. Scarpino, Jr. announced Tuesday.
Brody was convicted Sept. 26, 2018, following a jury trial.
Brody's sentence is as follows:
On one count of a Course of Sexual Conduct Against a Child in the First Degree, a class B violent felony – 25 years
On seven counts of Criminal Sexual Acts in the Second Degree, class D violent felonies – 7 years on each count to run consecutively, total 49 years
On one count of Endangering the Welfare of a Child, an A misdemeanor – I year merged with the other sentences.
Assistant District Attorneys Paul Stein, Chief of the Child Abuse/Elder Abuse Bureau, and Amit Parab of the Special Prosecutions Division prosecuted the case.
No comments:
Post a Comment