A teacher who was convicted of sexually abusing boys at a school on the Hopi reservation was recently denied parole after the U.S. attorney for Arizona teamed up with the tribe to pen a letter opposing his release.
John Warren Boone was hired as a remedial reading teacher in 1979 at the Polacca Day School, which was run by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Nearly a decade later, the FBI found photo albums and videotapes of 142 nude boys at his home in 1987, and Boone was sentenced to life in prison.
“His name is still widely known on the reservation even though it’s been close to 40 years,” Hopi Chairman Lamar Keevama told KJZZ. “We still continue to suffer to this day. Unfortunately, we’ve lost some either to suicide or alcohol or substance abuse. It’s an open wound that will never go away.”
U.S. Attorney Timothy Courchaine for the District of Arizona has watched this case closely alongside his tribal liaison, Assistant U.S. Attorney Kiyoko Patterson, who is Navajo. Courchaine told KJZZ “and with the understanding that federal special trust responsibility doesn’t end at the sentencing.”
In his letter, Courchaine argued “Boone’s horrendous acts has caused generational trauma ... making his potential early release incomprehensible,” adding that granting him parole “is not only a risk to the public but the interest of justice.”
In 2016, the Hopi Tribe also sought written, verbal and video testimony from families ahead of a parole hearing in Massachusetts a decade ago in hopes of ensuring that Boone’s life sentence is carried out to the fullest.
The U.S. agreed to pay $13 million to 58 families in a civil settlement that included $6 million to cover psychological care, substance abuse treatment and education funding for victims — as well as $250,000 for a community healing program.
Courchaine wrote the victims' ages ranged from 5 to 12, noting Boone “befriended the young boys” and “gained their trust through coaching teams, giving gifts, taking trips and paying special attention to the victims.”
“You’ve heard it from Attorney Gen. [Pam] Bondi,” added Courchaine. “You’ve heard it from Deputy Attorney Gen. Todd Blanche that this Department of Justice has to be ensuring sex offenders and those who prey on children are held accountable and prevented from reoffending at all.”
Boone, who is now 72 years old, continues serving his life sentence in the custody of FCI Fort Dix, a low-security federal prison in New Jersey. It's home to more than 4,000 inmates, including Sean “Diddy” Combs.
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Patty Talahongva is an Arizona native and a longtime journalist; she’s also directed and produced documentaries, among other roles.
