Pendleton man pleads guilty to sex abuse

PENDLETON - A former substitute teacher pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree sex abuse Monday, admitting he engaged in deviant sexual intercourse with an adolescent female.

Prosecutor Kristi Hagey said Justin Smith, 51, also known as John Kuchler, would get nearly two years in jail under terms of the plea deal.

Smith's wife, Janis Kuchler, pleaded guilty to sex abuse in January, saying she aided and abetted her husband.

Kuchler, who was in the courtroom gallery during Monday's hearing, likely will receive five years probation.

Smith and Kuchler will be sentenced July 15. A pre-sentence investigation for both is being conducted.

Both were originally charged with six counts of first-degree sodomy and six counts of first-degree sex abuse.

If the case went to trial, Hagey said she would show Smith not only abused the adolescent girl, but a boy as well.

Due to the unusual aspects of the case, and the devastation it already has caused in the children's lives, Hagey didn't want them to testify for their own well being.

The crimes against the female happened sometime between November 2001 and February 2002. The couple was arrested in March.

Smith did not come into contact with the children through his substitute teaching or his business as a private educational tutor and consultant for learning disabled children.

Smith won't be able to have contact with the two juveniles or any other sex offenders for five years, and will be a registered sex offender.