Mark Webber | The Republic John Johnson, 52, Columbus, in the green stripes, walks to Jennings Circuit Court Friday morning where he appeared for an initial hearing on a formal charge of child solicitation, a Level 4 felony.
VERNON – The former Columbus North High School auditorium director and drama coach accused of trying to arrange a sexual encounter with a 14-year-old boy in North Vernon made his first court appearance Friday.
John Johnson, 52, was brought before Jennings Circuit Court Judge Murielle S. Bright on a formal charge of child solicitation, a Level 4 felony. If convicted, Johnson could receive up to 12 years in prison.
Although he had previously posted $2,555 bond shortly after his Nov. 23 arrest, prosecutors later issued an arrest warrant and took Johnson back into custody.
Jennings County Prosecutor Brian Belding said it was an “oversight” by jail officials to release Johnson, as suspects who are arrested on charges of felony child solicitation in Jennings County must remain in jail pending their initial hearing.
Upcoming court dates established by the judge Friday include a final attorney’s conference at 1 p.m. on March 3. The tentative trial date is March 27, beginning with jury selection at 9 a.m. Bright said she anticipates the trial will last three days.
Johnson has hired a defense lawyer, Russell A. Johnson of the Johnson, Gray & Johnson law firm in Franklin. The defendant and his attorney are not related.
In his request for an affordable bail, Russell Johnson said his client was experiencing suicidal thoughts and ideas while behind bars.
The judge said she believes Johnson’s lack of a criminal history, the counseling he has already initiated with Centerstone Behavioral Health and obtaining a lawyer before the initial hearing, all work in Johnson’s favor.
“But the facts surrounding this case are highly concerning,” Bright said.
Johnson’s bond was set at $50,000 surety or $5,000 cash.
Terms of Johnson’s release include agreeing to reside with his mother while awaiting trial, and to participate in counseling with an Indianapolis specialist. While Russell Johnson said he was unaware of any illegal drug use by his client, the defense attorney said John Johnson would be willing to be tested for substance abuse.
Bright said her most important stipulation for releasing Johnson is that he have no contact whatsoever with children. That includes no communication through the internet.
“In fact, it might be best if you didn’t have a phone at all, except for receiving calls,” Bright said.
When the judge asked Chief Deputy Prosecutor William “Drew” Dickerson if he had concerns regarding her conditions, Dickerson voiced his approval as long as “things are handled discreetly.”
Russell Johnson told the court he had already gone over his client’s legal rights in an earlier meeting, so the judge waived John Johnson’s right for a formal reading in court.
A probable cause affidavit filed Monday in Bright’s court states that John Johnson’s arrest stemmed from a Predator Catchers Indianapolis (PCI) sting operation that was conducted on the gay dating app Grindr and other messaging platforms over the course of at least several weeks.
PCI president Eric Schmutte set up a decoy profile on the app as a fictitious 14-year-old boy and had been communicating with an adult male who was using the alias name of Joe. Court documents state Schmutte had arranged to meet Joe at the North Vernon Walmart Supercenter, near the intersection of State Road 3 and North Second Street, to go somewhere for a sexual encounter.
Video posted on the PCI Facebook page shows Schmutte following Johnson, showing him digital photos and continuously questioning him about his intentions until deputies with the Jennings County Sheriff’s Department took Johnson into custody near the store’s main entrance.
One of the photos Schmutte received from Joe was of Johnson wearing the same clothes that he was wearing inside the Walmart.
Upon learning of the allegations against Johnson last week, Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp. terminated Johnson’s employment at Columbus North High School, where he was an hourly employee, BCSC officials said earlier.
