New Jersey Devils Sack Prospect After He’s Found Guilty of Sex Assault of 16yo

© Bruce Bennet / AFP

WINDSOR, Ontario — A former player with the Ontario Hockey League Windsor Spitfires has been found guilty of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl in the washroom of a Windsor, Ont., bar in March 2013.

NHL team the New Jersey Devils have sacked forward Ben Johnson after hearing the judges decision.

Johnson was drafted by the Devils in 2012 and has spent the last three seasons in the AHL with their affiliate team, the Albany Devils.

The club issued a statement on Thursday which confirmed they were releasing the 22-year-old from his contract after being told the judge's verdict.

"Earlier today, the club was informed of Windsor Superior Court Justice Kirk Munroe’s ruling against Mr. Johnson," the statement read.

"Based on the ruling, the club has initiated the process required to terminate Mr. Johnson’s Standard Player's Contract.

"The organization will have no further comment."

Johnson pleaded not guilty to sexual assault, claiming that he and the victim did not engage in sexual intercourse, and that their contact in a bar bathroom in March 2013 was limited to "consensual oral sex."

The victim disputed Johnson's version of events, saying nothing that occurred between them had been consensual, and the prosecution insisted she was so intoxicated that consent could not have been given.

Based on evidence provided by witnesses in the bar that night and a sexual assault nurse, Munroe said that Johnson's testimony was "unbelievable."

The judge ruled that a blood stain found on the victim's pants was from a tear of the hymen and not from her menstrual cycle as Johnson claimed.

He concluded that full intercourse occurred in the bathroom stall and said Johnson should have known the victim was too drunk to consent to any sexual interaction.

The unidentified woman, who is now 20, has launched a $3.95 million civil lawsuit against Johnson.

She also included the now-closed Mynt nightclub in the suit, claiming that "its owners and employees allowed underaged people like herself to become drunk and vulnerable, then failed to protect them."

Johnson played 49 games in the AHL, scoring six goals with four assists. He was drafted 90th overall by the New Jersey Devils in 2012, signing a three-year entry-level contract.

    Windsor, Ontario is just across the Detroit River from Detroit

On Today's P&P List: 2 - 21 Year Olds and an ex Hockey Player

Former Wichita hockey player convicted of child sex abuse

Jurors convicted Michael A. Chighisola, 49, of two counts of child rape and one count of aggravated criminal sodomy. Sedgwick County Jail Courtesy photo

BY AMY RENEE LEIKER

Sedgwick County jurors have returned a guilty verdict against a former Wichita hockey player charged with sexually abusing a 9-year-old.

Michael A. Chighisola, 49, was convicted Friday of two counts of rape and one count of aggravated criminal sodomy of a child younger than 14, according to Dan Dillon, spokesman for the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office. Jurors acquitted him of four additional counts: two of rape and two of aggravated criminal sodomy.

The crimes took place in 2008 after the passage of Jessica’s Law, which strengthened penalties for some child sex offenders. That means Chighisola could be ordered to serve a sentence of life in prison on each conviction.

Chighisola joined the Wichita Thunder in 1995 and was a top scorer that season but was suspended after he stole money from his teammates in January 1996. He did not play a complete season.

He remains jailed in lieu of $100,000 bond, according to online jail records. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

Missouri man gets 25 years for child sex abuse in St. Charles County

By Mark Schlinkmann St. Louis Post-Dispatch

ST. CHARLES COUNTY   •  A Wildwood man was sentenced Monday to 25 years in prison after pleading guilty to statutory sodomy involving several children under age 14, the office of County Prosecutor Tim Lohmar announced.

Donald P. Boudreau, 69, of the 18500 block of Hawks Hill Road, must serve 85 percent of the sentence before becoming eligible for parole, authorities said.

Court records said Boudreau pleaded guilty in May to eight counts of statutory sodomy in connection with the incidents. The prosecutor's office said the incidents took place in the victims' home in St. Charles County. The sentence was issued by Circuit Judge Dan Pelikan.

Other statutory sodomy charges against Boudreau are pending in St. Louis County Circuit Court.

    Wildwood, Missouri

NY State Man Arrested for Child Sex Abuse

By Angie Pavlovsky | apavlovsky@wutr.tv

UTICA, NY - A Utica man was arrested after sexually abusing a thirteen year old boy and endangering the welfare of two other children.

According to Rome Police, 3 children were all reported missing at the time of the incident, after they had run away from their homes.

Anthony G. Getti, 21 of Utica was charged with one count of Sexual Abuse in the second degree, one count of forcible touching and one count of endangering the welfare of a child in regards to the first victim. He was charged with one count each of endangering the welfare of a child regarding a second 13 year old victim and a 12 year old victim in Utica.

The investigation is continuing and the victims have been offered counseling through the Child Advocacy Center.

Iowa man (21) sentenced to 30 years in prison

for child sex abuse

Associated Press

BETTENDORF, Iowa (AP) — A Bettendorf man has been sentenced to up to 30 years in prison for sexually abusing a child younger than 12 over a three-year period.

21-year-old Joshua Daniel Morales pleaded guilty in June to three counts of lascivious acts with a child.

Morales was sentenced Thursday to up to 10 years in prison on each count. The sentences will run back-to-back.

In exchange for his guilty plea, prosecutors dismissed one count of second-degree sexual abuse, a felony punishable by up to 25 years.

Now that is a good plea bargain! Not like so many I have seen where the pervert gets away with half or more of the evil he did.

Prosecutors say the Scott County Sheriff’s Department received a report Jan. 7 of a sexual assault that happened between 2012 and 2015.

Investigators say Morales was 17 and the child was 7 when the abuse began.

Theo Fleury, Former NHL Star, Leads March to Raise Awareness of Child Sex Abuse

 Adrian Cheung Reporter Global News

 
 Theo Fleury (second from right) walked alongside dozens of survivors to raise awareness. 

WINNIPEG — The walk from the town of Russell, Manitoba to Winnipeg took five days for supporters of Victor Walk, a group working to de-stigmatize mental health issues and sexual abuse.

The journey for Theo Fleury to become a leading voice for survivors of childhood trauma and sexual abuse, has taken a lifetime.

“We weren’t put on this world to suffer in silence,” Fleury said.

On Saturday, Fleury and over a dozen supporters walked from the Forks to the Manitoba Legislative Building to raise awareness for children who have suffered traumatic events or have been sexually abused. Fleury himself detailed sexual abuse he suffered during his junior hockey career, in his 2009 autobiography, “Playing with Fire”.

Graham James, Fleury’s head coach and abuser, has since been convicted for a number of sex offences. James most recently pleaded guilty in June 2015 to additional charges, to add onto his five year term.

Fleury, most known for his fearless play on the ice, started Victor Walk three years ago, when he and his team trekked from Toronto to Ottawa, to send a message to abuse survivors that they are not alone and that help is available.

“It’s about safety. And it’s about giving people permission to tell their stories,” Fleury said on Saturday.

“It’s a space where they’re not going to be re-victimized, where they’re going to be believed.”

Fleury himself said he realized after his retirement that his life would take a different path from his previous career in hockey during a book signing. He said he noticed a man clutching a copy of the autobiography and instantly knew how much his story being made public meant to others who have experienced abuse.

“He gets to the front of the line, puts the book on the table, looks me in the eye and says ‘me too’. And that’s when I knew what the rest of my life was going to look like,” Fleury explained.

Many walking alongside Fleury are survivors themselves. One of the organizers, Janet Renault, said they hope the work of Victor Walk will lead others to open up or at the very least, understand there is a safe space where they can share their stories.

“Your story will set you free. And the more you can talk about it – you’ll become empowered.”