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TOOELE — An assistant high school track coach is facing two felony charges for alleged sexual activity with a 15-year-old student.
Terrence Boone Johnson, 21, was charged Thursday in 3rd District Court with forcible sexual abuse, a second-degree felony, and sexual abuse of a minor student, a third-degree felony, for alleged sexual advances on a Tooele High School student in the basement of his Tooele home in May.
Johnson is a volunteer track coach at the high school, and police say the victim in this case was a member of the school's track team. He was booked into the Tooele County Jail Wednesday, two days after police interviewed him. He has also been placed on administrative leave by the Tooele School District.
“We were made aware of the situation yesterday afternoon after the arrest," said Assistant Superintendent Doelene Pitt in a prepared statement. "That’s all we know at this point until after the police conclude their investigation.”
Pitt declined to answer any questions about the allegations.
Investigators believe Johnson's offense was an isolated incident. "At this time there haven’t been any other additional reports involving any other students that Mr. Johnson coached," said Tooele police officer Tanya Turnbow.
The 15-year-old girl said in an interview at the Children's Justice Center this week that "she had engaged in a sexual relationship" with Johnson, the charges state.
Johnson's account to police, including details about his alleged advances, matched the substance of what the girl originally reported, according to charging documents.
"Mr. Johnson said he and the victim started "making out" after she asked him to pick her up from school one day," the charges state.
Turnbow described Johnson's behavior as "non-consensual sexual contact." She said the sexual abuse of a minor charge was enhanced to a felony because he was in a position of trust over the teen.
Contributing: Marc Giauque
