Tag Archives: Child Sexual Abuse

Child Abuse, Child Exploitation, Child Predator, Child Sexual Abuse, Family Secrets, Physical Abuse, Sexual Assault

SANFORD FOSTER PARENT SENTENCED TO 170 YEARS IN PRISON FOR CHILD EXPLOITATION OFFENSES

U.S. Attorneys » Middle District of Florida » News
Department of Justice
U.S. Attorney’s Office
Middle District of Florida

Thursday, November 17, 2022

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Wendy W. Berger today sentenced Justin Dwayne Johnson, Sr. (48, Sanford) to 170 years in federal prison for four counts of production of child sexual abuse material, one count of production and attempted production of child sexual abuse material, and one count of possession of child sex abuse material. Johnson had pleaded guilty on July 7, 2022.

According to court documents, in January 2022, an investigation was initiated into Johnson after Child Protection Services was alerted that Johnson was secretly recording his foster children. Johnson disclosed to an acquaintance that he had cameras in his home to record the children in the nude and that he had videos of him touching the children. During the investigation, law enforcement officers seized several devices belonging to Johnson. Forensic examinations of Johnson’s cellphone and other electronic devices revealed numerous images and videos of child sex abuse material. Specifically, the evidence showed that Johnson used the children under his care to produce depictions of sexually explicit conduct. Johnson’s cellphone also contained numerous visual depictions of child sex abuse material depicting young children. So far, the FBI has identified at least 18 victims that were sexually exploited by Johnson.

“Protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation is one of the highest priorities of my office,” said U.S. Attorney Roger Handberg. “This defendant victimized children who were especially vulnerable because they needed the protection of the foster care system. I am proud of the outstanding work by our local and federal law enforcement partners and my office that brought this predator to justice.”

“Instead of offering a haven for foster children, this predator betrayed the children with a home of horrific abuse,” said FBI Tampa Special Agent in Charge David Walker. “The FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force is committed to identifying, locating, and recovering the innocent victims of sexual abuse and ensuring their abusers are brought to justice.

“Johnson’s crimes are particularly disturbing, in that he was in a position that is expected to provide protection and care to already vulnerable children, and he exploited that role and further victimized these young children,” said Chief Cecil Smith of the Sanford Police Department. “I hope his sentence brings some comfort to those who he has abused.”

“As you can imagine, investigations of this nature can present overwhelming challenges,” stated Seminole County Sheriff Dennis M. Lemma. “However, the dedication of our teams, their diligence, and the collaborative efforts of the law enforcement professionals assigned to this case resulted in a successful prosecution and a sentence that sends a strong message that there are severe consequences for those who prey upon and exploit the most precious members of our community.” 

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the Sanford Police Department and the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Courtney Richardson-Jones and Ilianys Rivera Miranda.

This is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc.

Child Abuse, Child Sexual Abuse, Grooming, Incest, Rape, Sexual Assault

SD SENATE CANDIDATE JOEL KOSKAN ACCUSED OF GROOMING, RAPING CHILD FAMILY MEMBER

Koskan, 44, could also face counts of rape, sexual contact with a child under the age of 16 and aggravated incest-related child

.jpg photo of man wanted for incest and child sexual abuse
SD SENATE CANDIDATE ACCUSED OF GROOMING, RAPING CHILD FAMILY MEMBER

A Republican running for South Dakota state Senate was charged with felony child abuse Thursday for allegedly grooming and raping a young family member for years, according to local reports.

Joel Koskan, a third-time candidate for the state Senate, allegedly groomed and abused the young girl for at least six years starting in 2014, court documents obtained by the Mitchell Republic revealed.

Koskan, 44, could also face counts of rape, sexual contact with a child under the age of 16 and aggravated incest-related child, according to a probable cause statement the outlet cited.

The Senate hopeful began grooming the child when she was 12 years old by having her sit on his lap, kissing her and giving long hugs, according to the court docs.

The child thought the behavior was “‘normal things’ that families were supposed to do,” an investigator wrote in the document.

She realized what Koskan was doing to her was abusive at a summer camp she attended at age 14 when counselors spoke about inappropriate physical contact with adults, according to the publication.

Koskan allegedly installed a camera in her bedroom after her return from camp that he would use to constantly watch her from an app on his phone.  He also required her to straddle him without underwear, the court documents allege.

The victim said he regularly touched her inappropriately and eventually allegedly began forcing sexual intercourse after she turned 17 years old on multiple occasions in the family’s homes across the state.

Koskan controlled the child as well with location tracking, required nightly phone calls, authority over her social media accounts and jurisdiction over what she wore, the documents say.

Koskan used GPS tracking via her phone and vehicle and learned through her location that she had gone to the sheriff’s office to speak about the reported abuse, according to the documents.

“You promised you’d never do this,” Koskan texted her on May 6. “I’m begging you, you don’t want to do this.”

Other text message exchanges between the victim and the Republican appeared to confirm her story, investigators said.

Koskan was taken into custody Thursday and has an initial hearing scheduled for Nov. 7.

Since news of the alleged abuse got out, Koskan has deleted his Twitter account and made his campaign website private.

The South Dakota Democratic Party has since called for him to immediately end his campaign, the Mitchell Republic reported.

“These allegations concerning Joel Koskan are deeply disturbing, and he should immediately end his campaign,” party chairman Randy Seiler said in a statement. “While he will still appear on the ballot, the choice for the voters of District 26 couldn’t be clearer. Partisan politics aside, Joel Koskan should not be voting in the legislature on issues that affect South Dakota kids — or any issues at all.”

State Republicans also denounced any alleged abuse.

“The allegation against Joel Koskan is very serious, and the South Dakota Republican Party unequivocally opposes child abuse in all forms,” South Dakota GOP Chairman Dan Lederman said. “The South Dakota Republican Party trusts the justice system to work through the allegation.”

If convicted, Koskan can be locked behind bars for up to 10 years.

Administration Agenda, Child Exploitation, Child Innocence, Coverup, STDs, Suicide

WE HAVE BEEN IN AN STD PANDEMIC SINCE 2000

.jpg photo of Depression and Child Suicide graphic
Can you communicate with your Children? YOUR CHILDREN NEED YOU NOW!!!!

We now have 35 known STDs. In 1960, we only had two.

PARENTS:

  • Can you talk to your children?
  • Have you talked to your children?
  • Your child/children need you NOW, MORE THAN EVER!

The CDC released THE SYPHILIS CALL TO ACTION in April 2017
Penicillin is the only antibiotic that works, or has ever woked on Syphilis.

This Document was posted May 31, 2017

Teenagers make up one-third of the U.S. population, but they carry 50 percent of STDs.

One in four teens has an STD. (Over 80% of those infections have no symptoms, so they can go undetected, which is dangerous for the teen, their future sexual partners and their future children.)

From 1999-2014, the suicide rate in girls age 10 to 14 tripled.

The 6 months following an abortion, high school females were 10 times more likely to commit suicide than other females.

As STDs have become an epidemic in teens, so has depression.

STD Cases Soar in the US
Tuesday, September 20, 2022

Administration Agenda, Child Sexual Abuse, Coverup, Drugs, Good Parenting, STDs

STD Cases Soar in the US

1 Comment
.jpg photo of parent-child graphic
Your Child Needs You, STD Cases Climbing Rapidly!

STD Coverup, Pandemic Since 2000, Cases Climbing Rapidly

TUESDAY, September 20, 2022  –  Soaring numbers of sexually transmitted disease (STD) cases have prompted U.S. public health experts to call for more prevention and treatment.

This includes rising rates of syphilis and gonorrhea and HIV

“It is imperative that we… work to rebuild, innovate, and expand [STD] prevention in the U.S.,” Dr. Leandro Mena, director of the Division of STD Prevention at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said in a speech Monday at a medical conference on sexually transmitted diseases, the Associated Press reported.

Solutions include home test kits for some STDs that will make it easier for people to learn they are infected and to take steps to prevent spreading it to others, said Mena.

But Dr. Mike Saag, an infectious disease expert at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, said a core part of efforts must be to increase condom use.

“It’s pretty simple.  More sexually transmitted infections occur when people are having more unprotected sex,” Saag said.

The monkeypox outbreak has added another layer of concern, because the virus has been spreading largely between men who have sex with men.

Public health organizations and the National Coalition of STD Directors are calling for more federal funding, including $500 million for STD clinics.

Mena suggested reducing stigma, broadening screening and treatment, and supporting the development of at-home testing.

“I envision one day where getting tested [for STDs] can be as simple and as affordable as doing a home pregnancy test,” Mena said.

While syphilis cases dropped sharply with the availability of antibiotics in the 1940s, rates of the infection last year reached their highest since 1991.  The total number of cases reached its highest level since 1948.

At one point, infection rates had been so low the CDC planned to work to eliminate the disease, but the agency discarded those plans in 2013 as case numbers continued to grow, the AP reported.

Cases have been rising since 2002, primarily in gay and bisexual men.  In 1998, there were only 7,000 new syphilis cases nationwide.  By 2021, that number was 52,000, the AP reported.

The rate of cases was 16 per 100,000 people last year, with the highest rates in men who have sex with men and in Black and Hispanic Americans and Native Americans, the AP reported.

Women have typically had a lower rate than men, but it rose 50% last year.

Syphilis causes genital sores.  The bacterial infection can lead to severe symptoms and death without treatment.

Congenital syphilis, which passes the infection between a pregnant woman and her baby, can lead to loss of sight, hearing and even death in a newborn.  Last year, congenital syphilis cases reached 2,700, including 211 infants who were stillborn or died.  That’s a sharp increase from 300 cases annually a decade ago, the AP reported.

Infection rates for gonorrhea have also been increasing for years, while HIV cases were up 16% in 2021, the AP reported.

It is “out of control,” David Harvey, executive director of the National Coalition of STD Directors, told the AP.

Reasons for the increase range from inadequate funding for testing and prevention to delayed diagnosis during the pandemic.  Condom use has also been declining, while drug and alcohol use may have reduced inhibitions.  Increases may also be linked to a surge in sexual activity after COVID-19 lockdowns.

“People are feeling liberated,” Saag told the AP.

Child Abuse, Child Pornography, Child Sexual Abuse, Indifference, Law Enforcement, Teacher

Former TN Elementary School Teacher Facing Two Dozen Child Sex Charges

.jpg photo of jail in TN
Rutherford County Jail, TN

Teacher charged with 24 sex crimes after posting TikToks of students, school says

A former Tennessee elementary school teacher is facing two dozen child sex charges including rape after police say she posted inappropriate videos of students to TikTok.

Taylor Cruze, 23, was indicted last week by a grand jury in Smyrna as a result of a police investigation in connection to the felony crimes, Rutherford County Schools spokesperson James Evans told USA TODAY.

Evans said that prior to her arrest last month, Cruze was a first-year fifth-grade teacher at John Colemon Elementary School in Smyrna, about 25 miles southeast of Nashville.

She was suspended without pay May 2, Evans said, and resigned from her job May 22.

Evans did not provide additional details about the case to USA TODAY, including what the TikTok videos contained or when they were posted.

On Aug. 3, court records show, officials issued a warrant for Cruze’s arrest and the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office arrested her Aug. 10.

Cruze is charged with multiple counts of exploitation of a minor under 13 by electronic means, exploitation of a minor by electronic means and especially aggravated sex exploitation of a minor.  She also faces charges of solicitation of a minor – rape of a child, and sexual battery by an authority figure.

Court documents show that at the time of her arrest, Cruze lived in Murfreesboro, about 14 miles south of the elementary school.

On Wednesday, Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Lisa Marchesoni told USA TODAY her current address was listed in Knoxville.

A jail spokesperson told USA TODAY Wednesday that Cruze posted a $100,000 bond the same day she was arrested.

Court records show she is due in court on Sept. 28 for a plea hearing.

Evans said the school district is “fully cooperating with law enforcement” as the investigation continues.