Local man convicted of long-term child sex abuse

Fort Scott resident Paul S. Johnson was convicted on Wednesday when he pleaded no contest to charges that he regularly sexually abused a young girl in both Linn County and Bourbon County.

Johnson pleaded no contest to aggravated criminal sodomy, a severity level 2 felony, and aggravated indecent liberties with a child, a level four felony.

He faces a total of 23 years and 8 months in prison. He'll be sentenced on Oct. 2 at the Bourbon County Courthouse. Johnson is currently in custody at the Southeast Kansas Regional Correctional Center in lieu of $150,000 bond.

In a no-contest plea, the defendant neither admits nor disputes the charges.

Johnson had fought the charges since both the Linn County Attorney and the Bourbon County Attorney charged him with numerous sex abuse complaints in early 2006. The case had been headed to jury trial next month.

Johnson's case in Bourbon County began when he was charged with 11 counts of aggravated indecent liberties, one count each of aggravated criminal sodomy and criminal sodomy. In Linn County, he was charged with one count of attempted rape, 10 counts of aggravated criminal sodomy, 10 counts of aggravated indecent liberties, and one count of sexual exploitation of a child. All the charges were dropped except for the two charges to which he pleaded.

The victim was 7 years old when the alleged abuse began in Pleasanton, according to testimony at the preliminary hearing in June 2006.

The molestation worsened and accelerated over time, she said.

"He molested me," the girl said at the hearing. "He forced me to do sexual favors for him."

The girl testified that he also used sexual abuse as retribution.

The victim, who is now 16 years old, told authorities that Johnson repeatedly told her not to tell anyone about the abuse, saying there would be consequences if she did, according to court documents.

Fort Scott Police questioned Johnson about the reported abuse last April. Johnson confessed. However, his defense attorney later said it was a false confession and filed a motion to suppress it, citing what he said were numerous violations of his client's rights during the interview. According to the motion, police denied Johnson's right to speak to an attorney, forced him to repeat answers to questions for taping purposes, denied him a non-caffeine drink he requested when he felt the onset of a seizure stemming from mental and physical disabilities, and failed to advise him of his Miranda rights before the interview.

A judge denied the motion, saying police properly advised him of his rights, but Johnson understood his rights and protections and chose to waive them.

Then the defense asked the court to bring in Alan Hirsch, an expert on false confessions, to study the case and testify at the trial. Had there been a trial, Hirsch would have testified on the background of false confessions and their surprising frequency.