A former Johnson County government employee was given jail time and probation for two counts of crimes against a child.
On Thursday in Johnson County District Court, Christopher Wehunt was sentenced to 60 days in jail, 60 days of house arrest and five years of probation for two charges involving child sexual abuse materials:
- Sexual exploitation of a child; promote performance of a child under the age of 18
- Sexual exploitation of a child; possess media of child under the age of 18
A second count of sexual exploitation of a child; promote performance of child under the age of 18 was dismissed as part of the plea deal.
The alleged crimes happened between Aug. 1 and Oct. 11, 2024, according to court records.
Wehunt worked for Johnson County government in the county’s emergency communications center from Jan. 1, 2015, until Oct. 21, 2024. He was fired from the job after charges were filed, according to Johnson County Court records.
Prior to that job, Wehunt served in the Marines from 2002 to 2012, after which he was honorably discharged.
The sentence was handed down by Judge Michael P. Joyce.
Wehunt committed the crimes in 2024
In September 2024, the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office received information from the Johnson County Government Human Resources Department regarding a tip the department had received about Wehunt committing illegal activities with a minor, according to court records.
An ex-girlfriend of Wehunt’s said t a 16-year-old child got in contact with her on the social media app Snapchat and told her that Wehunt had requested nude photos of her, according to a criminal affidavit.
“[The victim] told Wehunt several times that she was only 16 years old. He responded that her young age ‘made it even better,’” according to court documents.
The girl told investigators that Wehunt would get angry if she refused to send the photos, according to the affidavit. He also sent her photos and video of himself performing sexual acts.
Wehunt allegedly did similar activities with other minors through Snapchat, according to communications discovered by Sheriff’s investigators on Wehunt’s phone.
Affidavit says Wehunt admitted to requesting images
When detectives made contact with Wehunt, he admitted to requesting nude photographs from underage girls, with their ages ranging from 13 to 17, according to the criminal affidavit in the case.
When asked how many girls within that age range he had requested nude images or videos from, he “hesitated and stated the ‘ballpark’ was ten,” according to the affidavit. Wehunt told detectives about half of the minors he contacted had sent him photos.
Wehunt agreed to a plea deal
In Wehunt’s request for a downward departure, or a sentence lower than the standard presumptive range on Kansas’s sentencing guidelines grid, court documents highlighted that he took accountability for his crimes.
“(Wehunt) fully and freely acknowledged his offenses to the extent of offering information arguably unknown to law enforcement officers. (He) also cooperated with law enforcement officer by surrendering to them and consenting to the seizure and search of his electronic devices,” court documents stated.
After he was charged, he underwent a psychosexual evaluation at the Lenexa-based Clinical Associates that showed he was amenable to treatment, and that a treatment program existed to help him.
As part of his probation, Wehunt must:
- Register as a sex offender
- Not have contact with a minor without the supervision of an informed adult
- Cannot consume alcohol or own or possess a firearm
- Cannot violate any municipal, state or federal laws
- Get a mental health evaluation and follow all recommendations, as well as a substance abuse evaluation
- Have a monitoring service like Covenant Eyes installed on all electronic devices with internet capabilities
- All devices with internet access are subject to a search by a probation officer at any time.
