Spanish Fort football player charged with 1st-degree rape

DAPHNE, Ala. (WALA) - Spanish Fort High School football standout Deon Johnson was arrested by Daphne Police on a first-degree rape charge at the school on Monday.

Police said this is a new allegation and is completely separate from and involving a different victim than Johnson's previous rape arrest on Sept. 6. Authorities said, in this most recent case, the victim, whose name and age were not released, claimed that Johnson forcibly raped her.

After an investigation, the police said they found enough probable cause to charge Johnson with first-degree rape. Daphne police did not disclose when the rape occurred.

Daphne Police Lt. Jud Beedy said, "The evidence that we've got, we believe that we have enough probable cause that he actually forced this girl to have sex with him."

Although he didn’t release many details about the incident, Beedy did say, “That’s a very violent and powerful act that was done to her, and so there's gonna be a lot of healing that goes on.”

Spanish Fort Coach Mark Freeman knew about the arrest but he could not say whether Johnson will play in the school's game on Friday. Freeman said he "hates this for everybody involved," but at this point it's too early to tell whether Johnson will play the next game.

Freeman said, considering the serious charge, "Football should be the least of (Johnson’s) worries."

When Johnson was previously arrested on Sept. 6, reports said the arrest stemmed from an investigation that began after police received a complaint from the parents of a juvenile victim.

“Through the investigation, we had enough probable cause to charge Mr. Johnson with rape in the second degree and sodomy in the second degree,” said Beedy on Sept. 7.

FOX10 News went to Johnson's address, but no one was home.

Baldwin County School Spokesman Terry Wilhite said it’s up to the courts to decide Johnson’s future at school.

" If there are no directives by the court regarding a student’s return to school, then the student can indeed return to school; because under American law, you are indeed innocent until proven guilty,” said Wilhite,

If Johnson gets out on bond, high school football may be out of the picture. 

Johnson’s defense team is asking a judge to allow him to participate in after-school activities.

 The Baldwin County District Attorney's Office wants the suspect to be on house arrest after school hours.

Police said the victim is recovering and is receiving help from the Department of Human Resources.