MOORHEAD, Minn. -- A Moorhead man who served jail time for possessing an image of a nude girl on his cell phone, only to have the conviction later overturned, was charged Monday with having sex with the same girl.
Police arrested Gary Lee Johnson, 33, on Friday after the alleged victim told a Clay County Social Services worker about the sexual contact between her and Johnson and the worker contacted police, according to court documents.
Judge Kris Davick-Halfen set bail at $250,000 bond with conditions or $500,000 bond without conditions during Johnson's initial appearance Monday in Clay County District Court.
Johnson faces seven counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, each carrying a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison.
The girl, who is under the age of 16 and knows Johnson, told police the sexual abuse started when she was 10 or 11. She said she was aware Johnson had been arrested earlier because he had nude photos of her on his cell phone.
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In 2008, Johnson admitted he downloaded an image of a nude girl onto his cell phone and threatened to shoot the detective working the case. He accepted a plea agreement and received six months in jail.
However, the Minnesota Court of Appeals later ruled the image, which showed the naked upper half of a 12-year-old girl who had her arms crossed over her chest, did not depict "sexual conduct" and therefore didn't constitute illegal pornography, according to Forum archives.
The appeals court ruled that for an image to be considered child porn, the physical contact depicted must be part of an "apparent act or sexual stimulation or gratification."
In the current case, the alleged victim told police the most recent sexual contact with Johnson occurred Sept. 29. She estimated Johnson has had sex with her 40 to 50 times, court documents state.
Moorhead police Lt. Tory Jacobson said evidence discovered last April connects Johnson to more crimes. Prosecutor Pamela Harris said court documents state the girl talked to a detective several months ago about a letter found in her wallet that outlined sexual acts Johnson wanted her to perform.
At the time, the girl said she didn't know who the letter was from, but she later told police it was from Johnson and that she'd lied to the detective before because she was nervous, court documents state.
Johnson is being held in the Clay County Jail. The public defender appointed to Johnson on Monday did not immediately return a message.
Mike Nowatzki is a reporter at The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead, which is owned by Forum Communications Co.
