Alleged victim believed to have left Coeur d'Alene area

COEUR d’ALENE — A charge was dismissed on Tuesday against a former substitute teacher who was accused of having sexual relations with a female high school student in Coeur d'Alene earlier this year. 

Johanna M. Tuttle, 28, was charged with sexual battery of a minor child 17 years of age, but the charge was dropped because prosecutors have not been able to maintain contact with the alleged victim who is believed to have moved to the Seattle area with Tuttle.

Tuttle on Tuesday appeared before Judge Penny Friedlander in a Kootenai County courtroom for a scheduled preliminary hearing.

The felony charge, filed May 25, could be re-filed if the alleged victim returns to the county and she cooperates.

The charge carries maximum sentences of up to 25 years or life in prison, depending on the sexual contact that is proven.

Tuttle was working as a substitute at Project CDA, an alternative high school in the Coeur d’Alene School District. Tuttle’s mother, Phyllis Tuttle, was a teacher at the school at the time. Both Phyllis Tuttle and Principal Rosie Astorquia were notified of the alleged affair.

Police reports said the mother of one of the alleged victim’s friends came forward with the allegations to a school resource officer. The mother reported it immediately after being informed of the allegations.

The alleged affair between the student, who now is 18, and substitute teacher was carried out between early January and March of this year.

Police reports said Johanna Tuttle and students were going to parties, where they drank alcohol. Some of the alleged sex occurred at the gatherings. Sex also allegedly occurred at Tuttle’s residence. 

Police obtained text messages between the parties that seemed to suggest an affair, according to court documents.

Laura Rumpler, spokeswoman for the Coeur d’Alene School District, told The Press that Tuttle is no longer employed as a substitute by the school district.

School officials cooperated fully with the Coeur d’Alene Police Department during the investigation, Rumpler said.

 “Within hours of being made aware of the allegations, the substitute was notified that she would no longer be able to substitute teach in the Coeur d’Alene School District, and we took measures to support the student involved in the situation,” Rumpler said.

Tuttle’s mother, Phyllis, retired from the school district in June.

Staff writer Maureen Dolan contributed to this story.