Pawnee City Public Schools employee fired after arrest for child sexual assault

PAWNEE CITY, Neb. (KOLN) - A Pawnee City Public Schools employee was arrested and charged Tuesday after allegedly sexually abusing two children between Feb. and March.

Kandice B. Johnson, 35, is charged with three felonies.

Johnson is charged with third degree sexual abuse by a school employee. According to court documents filed in Pawnee County Court, Johnson “engaged in a pattern or scheme of conduct with the intent to subject a student to sexual penetration or sexual contact between Feb. 1 and March 14.”

She is also charged with first degree sexual assault of a child and child abuse for crimes she allegedly committed against a second child. Court documents say that between February and March, Johnson subjected a child who is between the ages of 12 and 16 to sexual penetration.

According to court documents, Johnson allegedly caused the child to be placed in a situation that endangered their life, physical, or mental health; be sexually exploited through sex trafficking of a minor, or by allowing, encouraging, or forcing such minor child to engage in debauchery, public indecency, or obscene or pornographic photography, films, or depictions; or be abused.

Following her arrest, Johnson was fired from her job at Pawnee City Public Schools.

The school district posted the following message to students and parents on its website.

“Over the last several days, Pawnee City Public School District received reports of off-campus, inappropriate communications and interactions between a non-certified staff member and minor students. The school district immediately reported this matter to local law enforcement and collaborated to investigate these reports. An arrest was subsequently made in this matter and the school district took immediate action to end its employment relationship with the involved staff member.” - Pawnee City Public Schools