A West Tisbury school teacher was arrested on Tuesday amid charges that he provided alcohol and pornographic materials to minors and hosted underage parties at his Vineyard Haven home.
Daniel K. Johnson, 43, was arrested by Tisbury police at his home on Mariner’s Road and charged with five counts of furnishing alcohol to minors, one count of assault and battery and two counts of dissemination of obscenities to minors. Police also confiscated a personal computer from Mr. Johnson’s home.
He was arraigned in Edgartown district court on Wednesday where he entered a plea of not guilty to the charges. He was released on $5,000 bail.
A police incident report requested by the Gazette, with the names of victims and other personal information redacted, states that a parent went to the Tisbury police station on Dec. 1 to report concerns that his teenage son might be receiving alcohol from an adult.
The nine-page report by officer Daniel Hanavan said the father found his son with a bottle of 100-proof vodka; the father subsequently took the bottle to an Island package store and asked who purchased it. An employee checked the UPC scanning code on the bottle and determined the time and date the bottle was purchased.
During a review of the store’s security video, the father recognized the person on the tape as Mr. Johnson, an industrial arts teacher at the West Tisbury elementary school.
The father then went to Mr. Johnson’s home and spoke to him about his teenage son, a former West Tisbury school student who is now a student at the high school. Mr. Johnson reportedly denied buying the alcohol for the student, and said the boy took the bottle from his truck.
The police report includes an account from a parent who became concerned after her son provided inconsistent information about where he was spending the night on several occasions.
The mother said she spotted her son driving with Mr. Johnson and pulled the vehicle over, telling her son to get into her car. Mr. Johnson then reportedly followed them to a West Tisbury home and came inside to talk. Mr. Johnson, who according to the report had a strong odor of alcohol on his breath, told the parents he brought their son to an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting at a downtown church earlier that day.
The police report also contains an account of a parent who confronted Mr. Johnson, to which Mr. Johnson reportedly replied: “I’m really sorry that this got out of hand and went this far.” The parent then contacted the West Tisbury school and the Vineyard schools superintendent’s office.
The report details numerous interviews with students who said Mr. Johnson routinely purchased alcohol for them and hosted parties at his home attended by underage people, sometimes playing beer drinking games on a table the teacher built in his basement.
The report indicates Mr. Johnson provided his cell phone number to students so they could call him to purchase alcohol.
The report also indicates that Mr. Johnson showed pornographic films and offered to perform sex acts on students.
Mr. Johnson also worked as an emergency medical technician with the Tri-town squad up-Island. He reportedly has been placed on leave from his duties pending the outcome of the criminal investigation.
Tisbury police chief John Cashin said the investigation is ongoing. He encouraged any other students or parents with information to come forward and talk with school or police officials.
Chief Cashin said investigators are analyzing the computer material seized from Mr. Johnson’s house, and he said additional charges could be filed. He praised the students who provided information to investigators.
“These young people who came forward were very courageous to do so. They opened themselves to a lot of scrutiny and deserve credit for their bravery . . . I am sure it was not easy,” he said.
The chief also praised the police work of Officer Hanavan.
Vineyard schools superintendent James K. Weiss confirmed yesterday that Mr. Johnson had been placed on administrative leave with pay pending the outcome of an internal school investigation. He said Mr. Johnson has worked at the West Tisbury school since 2001 and is currently a half-time teacher with professional status.
Mr. Weiss said school officials had heard rumors of inappropriate behavior involving Mr. Johnson prior to his arrest. The superintendent said he had a meeting with Mr. Johnson on Monday, the day before his arrest, to give him an opportunity to state his side of the case.
“He denied any involvement at all to me. Then we heard from the police,” Mr. Weiss said.
Following the arrest, West Tisbury principal Michael A. Halt talked to students in grades 4 through 8 about the matter. A letter was also sent home to parents explaining the situation.
Mr. Weiss said he plans to discuss the incident with the staff to emphasize the importance of boundaries between students and teachers to prevent future problems.
“A vast majority of those people — maybe 99.99 percent — are doing a fantastic job and are deserving of the trust we place in them. I hope people do not lose sight of that,” he said.
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