Tag: Murrieta
Murrieta Couple Charged With Torture, Child Abuse; 5-Year-Old Boy Is Comatose, in Grave Condition: DA
A Murrieta couple have been charged with child abuse and torture after a 5-year-old boy was hospitalized with severe injuries and is now comatose, authorities announced Thursday.
Benjamin Matthew Whitten, the boy’s biological father and a U.S. Navy sailor, and his live-in girlfriend Jeryn Christine Johnson appeared for arraignment in Murrieta on Thursday afternoon, but the hearing was postponed, according to the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office.
The couple were arrested Tuesday, about 10 hours after Johnson called 911 to report the child being in medical distress, police said Wednesday.
Police officers found the unidentified boy frail and extremely malnourished, a Murrieta Police Department lieutenant said. He had “severe injuries requiring immediate medical” care, the DA’s office said.
A neighbor said she saw paramedics doing chest compressions on the child.
The boy was taken by ambulance to an area hospital and then airlifted to another hospital in San Diego County. He remains in grave condition Thursday, according to the DA’s office.
Dozens came out for a vigil outside the family’s home early Wednesday’s evening. Neighbors said they didn’t see the family outside very often, though the father was sometimes heard yelling at the boy.
Whitten, 33, and Johnson, 25, were charged Thursday with one count of torture, and one count of child abuse with an allegation of causing the child to become comatose.
At Thursday afternoon’s appearance, their arraignment was posted until Aug. 24 and the judge kept their bail at $1 million each. A public defender was appointed for Whitten and a defense attorney will be appointed to represent Johnson because the public defender’s office said it cannot represent two defendants in the same case, a DA’s spokesman said.
After getting a warrant, investigators searched the couple’s home in the 24000 block of Verdun Lane, where police said they found “extremely unsanitary” conditions. Eleven dogs, four cats and two fish were taken from the home.
Administration code enforcement violations have occurred at the home, but no emergency calls were made after the family moved there in April 2016, police said.
Whitten serves as a machinist’s mate nuclear first class stationed at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard Detachment in San Diego, the U.S. Navy confirmed. Whitten enlisted in 2009, with his home state listed as Texas, and he was stationed on the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier from 2011 to February 2016, naval records show.
Murrieta Teacher Arrested on Suspicion of Having Sexual Relationship With Underage Student
A former Murrieta Valley High School teacher was arrested Friday on suspicion of having a sexual relationship with an underage male student, authorities said.
Shannon Fosgett, 44, turned herself in to Murrieta Police Department detectives and was booked on multiple charges, all felonies: one count of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor under 18 and two counts of oral copulation with a minor, according to a news release.
Fosgett had resigned her teaching position on Wednesday, the Police Department said, citing the Murrieta Valley Unified School District.
The investigation began earlier this week when police were informed of an alleged inappropriate relationship involving a Murrieta Valley High teacher and a male student, the news release said. The case was subsequently turned over to the Police Department’s detective bureau.
Investigators interviewed the boy, who told them that one of his instructors “began showing interest in him over a year ago,” which began with after-hours texting, according to authorities.
“As the relationship grew, the minor and the teacher engaged in oral sex and ultimately sexual intercourse,” the police statement said. On Monday, other students notified school administrators of the alleged relationship, prompting a report to authorities.
The teacher was then identified as Fosgett, a Murrieta resident, the Police Department said.
Before she resigned her position as an earth sciences teacher, Fosgett had been placed on indefinite administrative leave by the school district. A statement was posted on Murrieta Valley High’s website regarding the matter.
A former student described Fosgett as a “really good teacher” who helped her get her grades back up last year when she was struggling academically.
She added she was “shocked” by the allegations.
“I heard rumors, but I didn’t really want to believe them … I still kind of don’t want to believe them, because it seems really out of character for her,” said the student, who declined to be identified publicly.
Fosgett’s bail was set at $40,000. She was released from custody on Friday, Riverside County sheriff’s online records showed, and was scheduled to appear in court Jan. 29.
Anyone with information about the case has been asked to call Murrieta police at 
951-696-3615.