Kenneth Lee Johnson
Posted by Webmaster in Hall of Shame, Illinois, ME-CP, Middle Schools, Social Studies
(01/26/09 – Initial BadBadTeacher.com Report)
Kenneth Lee Johnson, 60, a seventh-grade social studies teacher at Antioch Upper Grade School in Antioch, Illinois has been arrested on allegations that he possessed child pornography.
Johnson was initially charged with multiple counts of possession of child pornography.
Reportedly the possibility of future charges of child sexual assault exists.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office will hold a press conference on Monday morning to provide more information on the case.
01/26/09 – Additional Information
It is alleged that Kenneth Lee Johnson told arresting officers he has sexually abused 75 boys in Illinois and Washington dating back to 1974 with the majority of those boys living around Antioch and Wacuonda at the time of the supposed sexual abuse.
Johnson’s arrest last week on 10 counts of possession child pornography was reportedly the result of a tip from the FBI. It is also alleged that investigators found more than 1,000 images and close to a 100 videos depicting boys as young as two-years-old engaging in sex acts on Johnson’s home computer and on DVDs and in print material at his home.
Reportedly Johnson who has taught social studies at the Antioch Upper Grade School since 1989 was fired on Wednesday.
Reportedly, a number of the boys that Johnson claims to have sexually abused have denied the crimes occurred and police are trying to determine if Johnson’s claims of sexual abuse are true or whether he’s just relaying fantasies to them.
02/18/09 – Johnson Remains Jailed, Resigns From School
Reportedly Kenneth Johnson was still being held in the Lake County Jail on Tuesday in lieu of $500,000 bond.
Despite earlier reports to the effect that Johnson was fired in January, reports now indicate that Johnson submitted a letter of resignation last week, and the district made it effective Tuesday.
Sheriff Mark Curran said it is likely that the case will go to a grand jury and that Johnson will be indicted.
02/26/09 – Court Appearance
Kenneth Lee Johnson made a court appearance yesterday at which he entered not guilty pleas to 12 counts of possession of child pornography.
Johnson was indicted on the 12 counts last week by a grand jury.
At the time of his arrest, Johnson claimed to have molested 75 boys in Illinois and Washington state however investigators have been unable to corroborate Johnson’s claims.
Kenneth Johnson remains in the Lake County Jail in lieu of $500,000 bond.
07/14/09 – Sentencing
Kenneth Lee Johnson, who reportedly pleaded guilty in April to possession of child pornography, has been sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison.
At Johnson’s guilty plea in April, Circuit Judge John Phillips agreed to consider placing Johnson on probation and to sentence him to no more than four years in prison if probation was not appropriate.
Reportedly a sex offender evaluation of Johnson concluded he had little chance of success in treatment because he had been involved with pornography for more than 30 years.
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I never had Mr. Johnson as a teacher but i always thought he was creepy. Among being an oddity at hissing and meowing at things (if that’s not weird enough) he always used to look down his shirt in the hallway and i even once saw his hand by his privates. Being on the gold team i never really saw him much but never thought he’d get arrested, no matter how eccentric he was.
Now Mr. Owens has been arrested, and according to a mom of one of the kids in my grade *name is withheld* Mr. Owens and Mr. Johnson had been very close…I guess i should have put two and two together a longgg time ago. But i suppose you never know, right?
And i don’t think he molested seventy-five boys. If he did one of the ones he claimed to have sexually abused would have spoken up when the police asked them. Maybe he molested two or three and just said seventy-five for shock value, after all he knew he was going to jail.
I’m starting to think our school might be infested with Pedos. Who’s next…a principle?
This guy only got a slap on the hand. When are they really going to punish these freaks. They only get a couple of years. What a joke.
he didn’t really molest 75 children. he was crazy. i should know- i had him. some of the people that he said he molested are actually some of my friends, so i think if that had happened to them they would have either A)spoke up or B)i would have been able to tell something was bothering them.
If he really did molest 75 children, someone should have spoken up a long time ago. Victims who wait years before speaking up place other children in harms way. It is one’s duty to blow the whistle before it’s too late. This guy got away with murder!
okay yeah im 13 and i had him but now we have a new social studies teaher (mr. hey) and es thats really his name even though its pronounced ‘hi’
lol its weird but yeah Mr. Johnson was my teacher
ewww
he was soo mean
and he always growled and hissed at things…freak.. oh and meowed..
I switched from Catholic school (St.Peter’s, here in Antioch), to Antioch Upper Grade at semester break during 7th grade, 12 years ago. After having attended private school for 7 1/2 years (including Kindergarten), it was a bit of an adjustment. Johnson was indeed one of my teachers, for both Social Studies, and home room. I had never had a male teacher before, so that in itself was a first for me. He was actually a fairly good teacher- our class was a good few chapters ahead of what my former school had been, and he was very patient with helping me catch up on curriculum, while making sure I also followed along with the class. He was well-traveled, from what I remember, and tried very hard to share slides and other media from various places he had been, in order to peak the interest of his tween students… but, yes, he did indeed push it a bit too much. He was quite “eccentric”… the animal noises, pet stuffed animals (anyone remember “Bosco”?), and trying to either be-friend or scare students. He definitely sticks out in AUGS Alumni minds… and not in a great way, sadly. We all were a bit put off by him… even if he was a good teacher.
It’s very saddening that someone that could have potentially been a great teacher was really a pedophile, hiding behind the facade of an educator. If he had not been overcome by that evil, he maybe could have actually done something great. I do feel that sexual predators are pretty much possessed on some level. It’s pure evil, and unfortunately, we will never be able to get it out of our society completely. People like Johnson are everywhere, and it’s scary to realize that there are more out there, and some that have never been caught. He’s been doing this for decades- my mother was still a teenager when he claimed to have begun acting on his inner demons. He would have been retiring in just a few short years.
I now have two children of my own. Sending them to school in the near future is an exciting and scary event. Children and teens are taught to turn to parents and teachers in times of need. With people like Johnson in the world, how can we expect them to trust anyone?
This is no one’s business but his and his family. Let him have his day in court.??? I was attacked by my high school teacher. Let me just tell you this was before computers and NO ONE has the right to take prey on innocent children. You can in NO WAY say it’s the parents fault when this stuff happens in a closed school classroom. My parents have nothing to do with pedophiles preying on innocent kids and if you think for a moment that someone is picking and choosing who’s on the internet or who’s kid to attack, you’re wrong. It could happen to your kid. Anytime, anywhere. It’s whether or not the attack wants to make your kid a victim. So please ma’am dont sit and tell me that Mr. Johnson’s problems , which I might add, happened well before internet access, are an an addiction. It’s sin, it’s illegal and it is absolutely as a parent MY BUSINESS!