A gay college wrestler has been accused of “recklessly infecting” multiple sex partners with the HIV virus.
Michael Johnson (pictured) was a star wrestler at Lindenwood University, a private university in St. Charles, MO. He tested positive for HIV in January 2013. According to prosecutors, he had unprotected sex with multiple men in his dorm room between the time he tested positive and October 2013, when he was arrested. As a result, they say, he infected at least two men and exposed several others to the virus.
Related: How People With HIV Became The New Suicide Bombers
“He didn’t just fail to disclose his status,” assistant St. Charles County prosecutor Philip Groenweghe told the jury at the opening of Johnson’s trial yesterday. “When he was specifically asked if he was clean… he lied.”
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The 23-year-old athlete allegedly found his sex partners on social media and dating apps, using the screen name “Tiger Mandingo.” When police confiscated his laptop, they found 32 home videos of him having unprotected sex, often in his dorm room, with other guys.
Two of Johnson’s alleged victims testified against him. Both men said they agreed to have sex without a condom, but only after Johnson told them he didn’t have any protection. One of the men said he asked if Johnson was “clean,” and the wrestling champ replied yes, even though he wasn’t.
Related: HIV Positive Guys: Meet The New Criminal Class
Friends and relatives of Johnson have described him as “barely literate” and “naive” about HIV and HIV transmission. Meanwhile, activists say he’s been unfairly persecuted because of his medical condition.
Johnson told BuzzFeed, “My dream for my life is to continue with college, get my bachelor’s degree, and become a role model for people that are struggling to be gay, just as I was struggling.”
If convicted, he faces a maximum of 30 years in prison on felony charges, plus an additional 5 and 15 years on four other charges.
Gregg Jabarisidiki
What ever happened to condoms , it takes two . Never take anyone’s word .
Grant Mealey
Infecting others when knowing status is unacceptable…..
David García-Díaz
It’s no ones fault but your own if you get infected. You’re a fucking idiot if you think asking “are you clean” constitutes safe sex. I don’t care how bad you want the d, take some goddamn personal responsibility.
Juan Torred
People know what to do to protect yourselves but then again…. Ppl act like they don’t know.
Allen Manual
You bastard!!!
Spike
‘Barely literate’ and yet accepted to college. Go figure.
Marcos Villareal
Make him an example and keep him locked up for as long as possible. The media needs to start infection shaming.
K Patrick McCarthy
“Barely literate” yet he’s in college?
Joe Dalmas
This article brings up so many questions. Does “clean” mean “negative”? So, if you ask someone if he’s “clean” are you expecting an clear answer about his HIV status? Many on social media describe themselves as “HIV+ and clean”.
Isn’t it your responsibility as a bottom to make sure you practice safe sex or is it OK to throw caution to the wind and then blame the top?
What’s the difference between “infected” and “exposed to the virus”?
TrueWords
For me as a gay black male I will play the game of “maybe he did not know this or that in regards to HIV and HIV infection” however it does not hold water because any where he went to secure and lure these men there is INFORMATION about HIV…but that gets tossed out of the window when it has been revealed that he videotaped at least 30 encounters…that means that he KNEW exactly what he was doing and was MORE THAN happy to be doing it….also what is up with people having bareback sex with someone because they say I am negative or I am on PReP…some people in the gay community need to take a cold hard look at the behaviors that many are willing to participate in.
Jack Werner
Wish I could say I surprised by those calling for a harsh punishment, and judging this guy, but if you think harsh laws and penalties are going to end HIV infections you are ignoring the fact that never have and only make matters worse, since it discourages testing and treatment.
John Kuehnle
It sounds like everyone is protecting the one with the disease. I think it’s worst than shooting someone right in the face. Asking questions and wearing a condom isn’t 100 percent safe, condoms can break…
Spike
@K Patrick McCarthy: Not to mention, graduated from high school.
Spike
@TrueWords: His family claims he is barely literate yet he is intelligent enough to record and keep video of his sexual encounters on a laptop. Barely literate are 4 year olds playing kid games on an ipad.
TrueWords
@Spike: he was slated to play a college sport which is the new slavery for many black males in America
musctop
Sure–you can always take random guys at their word that they’re hiv negative. Seriously, do people still DO this? Suit up–it’s nobody’s fault but your own if you’re having unprotected sex.
inbama
I wish we had arrested infected people who recklessly spread the disease back in the 80s when there was no cure and HIV was a death sentence. Tens of thousands of lives would’ve been saved.
Unfortunately, activists had already labelled the first victims “our best and brightest” and made their right to an uninhibited lifestyle more important than the lives of more ordinary gay men.
inbama
@Gregg Jabarisidiki:
That does not change the fact that there is a victim and a villain here.
TrueWords
@Spike: I have to agree…where is HIS responsibility..
Blazipitous
Let it go. He did nothing wrong! I’m not saying these “victims” deserved it, but you don’t go around allowing random men to dump a load in you. That’s just asking for trouble!
It takes two to tango. I say we drop these charges and let the dude walk free. These careless queens are disgusting. I bet HIV was the last thing on their minds when their legs when in the air, moaning and groaning of pure bliss. Let this man go!
Desert Boy
Michael Johnson should be castrated.
Blazipitous
….when their legs were*…
orrine
First of all, about this ‘it’s not his fault’ thing. If you harm other people you mast answer for this, there must be no exception frm this.
Second of all, wtf, no condoms? It still baffles me in a world where incurable STDs exist.
orrine
So much victim blaming in this thread. So if you’ll meet the guy to have sex and he’ll promise you he won’t rape you and then rapes you, was it your fault that this happened? Really?
bnard620
What happened was horrible. But y would u believe someone u don’t even know when they say they r clean. Always assume they aren’t especially if you don’t know them. He lied and that’s horrible but then the guys also had unprotected sex with an unknown guy. They were either naive or didn’t wanna believe that someone they were having sex with could have anything. Either way it’s bad, he should get in trouble but then they guys should also realize that random hookups and having unprotected sex could get u something .
sf_italianboi
i guess im also curious if the victims barebacked with anyone else during this period? seems like everyone could have used better judgement all the way around
Rob Laughlin
Jesus, are we pushing poz guys to get written consent before sex? This was consensual sex. I highly doubt condoms were used. People need to protect themselves when engaging in sex. This is becoming a poz witch hunt.
Victor Barry
It goes to his intent to cause harm. Despicable behavior. Half of you are morons, by the way.
Jeffrey Thomas
I am curious why no one was arrested and charged recently for knowingly infecting children with chicken pox?
Stache99
“One of the men said he asked if Johnson was “clean,” and the wrestling champ replied yes, even though he wasn’t.”
Well, at least one of them thought of asking. The problem is that you still have two idiots in the equation.
ksterlings
The blame goes both ways. And CLEAN has nothing to do with HIV status.
I know many people that have avoided being tested/treated because then there would be record of their status and they would henceforth be criminalized. Much better if the arcane laws are wiped off the books and people are encouraged to be tested/treated. When on treatment the risk of transmitting the virus reduces by 96+%.
Instead we call him a monster, the other guy that also had unprotected sex a victim, and encourage people to stay in their dark about their status.
Condoms/serosorting/PrEP/Viral suppression are all forms of protection—limiting it to condoms only cuts the likelyhood of effective transmission control significantly.
martinbakman
@Gregg Jabarisidiki: I agree.
When you see data that says 1/4 of infected people don’t even know they are infected, let alone those that might lie about being HIV+, unprotected sex is hard to justify. Yet it continues.
Pedro Pelaez
It takes 2 to tango (bareback sex).
sportyguy1983
The “victims” are a bunch of idiots. You are having random hookups with a stranger. There are consequences to stupidity.
Stache99
@ksterlings: I just have to chime in and say sooo true. I know there’s allot here have negative feelings about the “were all equal” campaign but it does have allot of good about it. Stop demonizing those that have it and start sharing the responsibility. That’s true prevention.
James Sigmon
I agree to each thier own for not asking and sleeping around. This is old news any way this happen sometime ago.
Godabed
@Spike: “(barely literate) and (naive) about HIV and HIV transmission.” Reading comprehension. It specifically states about Hiv and Hiv transmission not that he was simply “barely literate”… Dear god re-read the article.
aliengod
What a disgusting human being. He should be castrated!
Curty
That was just cold and cruel. This guys lack of character is just shameful. And of course one person had to bring up color. What do you want a cookie that you’re a black gay male Truewords? This is not about skin color… this is about a POS lying and people practicing unprotected sex.
J.r. Graff
End criminalization laws NOW!!!
notevenwrong
This is prosecutor-speak. Their interest in in making the accused into a monster. You can’t take it at face value.
Calling a poz person “dirty” (which the prosecutor is basically doing) is highly prejudicial, especially from the mouth of a public servant. Also, the prosecutor is obviously trying to push all the “scary wild dangerous black man” buttons here. I bet they don’t have any proof that those two infected guys weren’t already positive.
These witch-hunt laws need to be scrapped.
money718
Sex is a natural act. The queens who got infected are the same as a teenager girl or woman who unexpectedly gets pregnant. Their sex drive overwhelmed them. Since HIV is now considered a chronic condition, give the dude probation and let him register as a sex offender. No need for him to rot away in prison.
Martyn Valenzuela
http://hiphopwired.com/2014/10/24/man-infects-hiv-23-month-old-niece-photos/
CCTR
@notevenwrong: “I bet they don’t have any proof that those two infected guys weren’t already positive.”
good point…or that they became positive after sex with someone else.
Clark35
I’ll bet he claimed he was “neg” or “neg and on prep” just like the guys he had unprotected sex did.
CCTR
@Joe Dalmas: What’s the difference between “infected” and “exposed to the virus”?
A person can be “exposed” to the virus and not get “infected” with the virus. Exposure could happen in a medical setting/situation or sexual contact. A person that gets exposed to the virus does not always contract the virus. Depends of the type of exposure and where if any point of entry is involved and also the viral load in the bodily fluids, and what type of barriers and protection were used.
I’m not totally certain but I think many of the state laws in the US don’t consider anything other than whether or not the person disclosed.
http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/02/health/criminalizing-hiv/index.html
Michael
This is a perfect example of a bad law!!!!!!! So it promotes ABSOLUTELY NO accountability on those who CHOOSE not to use condoms with STRANGERS; who may or may not have a virus, who may or may not know they have it, who may or may not know how its transmissible, who may out of privacy issues lie about their status. ONCE AGAIN I SAY NO ACCOUNTABILITY!
So this man is going to sit in jail for x amount of years for passing a virus on to some people who would have caught it eventually anyway.
A virus that is very manageable with medication and also can be made virtually intransmissible with PreP.
Bravo MO!
Shame on the “victims”! Shame on you! You and only you are to blame for what you caught and no one else. You and ONLY YOU choose not to use a condom! you know people can and can lie, you know people may not know if they absolutely have it, its YOUR FAULT not some random stranger.
THE VICTIMS SHOULD GET JAIL TIME FOR BEING STUPID THROW THEM IN JAIL TOO!!
once again this law has NO accountability for them being totally ignorant. for being stupid they should throw them in jail for at least attempting to hold him responsible.
money718
@Michael: Agreed
DarkZephyr
OK for those who are saying “it takes two” guess what? I would be pissed at someone for lying to me about their status even if I DID use a condom (which I *always* do) because condoms aren’t 100%. Lying about your status is unconscionable and does deserve a harsh penalty. “Activists” who say he is being “persecuted” can fuck off. I was once exposed to the HIV virustri when I bottomed for a fucking liar too and I INSISTED on condoms even though the fucker begged me to let him bareback me. He really tried to pressure me into it even though he knew damned well that he was HIV positive. Thank GOD I stood my ground and told him he could get off with someone else if he kept it up. I found out a year later from a mutual friend that he was a braggart who loved to talk about how he bare backed guys without telling them his status. When I first heard that my blood ran cold. I knew we had not BBed but still, condoms are not 100% safe. So I got tested twice, once via saliva and once via blood and I was negative. Waiting for the results was one of the most nerve wracking experiences I have ever had. Now I get tested every 6 months even though I am now in a monogamous relationship. BUT let me tell you once more, that I think people like the guy I talked about and the guy in the above article deserve to be punished harshly. Because guys are just gonna keep lying and infecting others if there is no law against it. And once more, condoms are NOT 100% fail safe.
Jonathan Lund
Gay people are the only people on this earth who will look you in the eyes while lying to you about EVERYTHING. NEVER believe anything a gay man says. They’ve spent years becoming expert liars because the roof over their heads at home depended on it. The fact that this kid videotaped what he was doing shows he gets off on what he’s doing. He’s permanently harming someone with no cure and for someone as powerless as he that’s the ultimate form of control. Send him to some prison up in Northern Alaska where the Indians drinking grain alcohol will rip him in half within three days.
Arcamenel
What I want to know is why he’s looking at over 20 years and the other guy from the other story got 6 months.
SportGuy
Why in the world would anyone not use condoms! Even if a guy says he is “clean”, I am still going to use condoms! I feel bad for these guys but they should have never agreed to sex if neither one of them had condoms!!
Zachary Lee
This is upsetting….
DarkZephyr
“Gay people are the only people on this earth who will look you in the eyes while lying to you about EVERYTHING.”
Gay people are the ONLY people who will do that? You are a dumb ass if you believe that.
money718
@Jonathan Lund: This is satire…right?
CCTR
@DarkZephyr: “Because guys are just gonna keep lying and infecting others if there is no law against it.”
That is one way of looking at it because these laws also may discourage people from getting tested and can encourage a blame game that simply absolves responsibility of the HIV negative partners and does little to stop transmission.
What are transmission rates, access to condoms and education and safe sex practices like inside of prisons? What happens when these prisoners serve their time and are released?
Kieran
Given the US judicial system treats these cases as if they are just minor offenses, none of us should be surprised. #Gay Lives (don’t) matter.
Ivan Alberto Lugo
Even though what he did is evil I’m not sorry for who he infected cuz they should know better and use protection!
Kangol
So much POZ-shaming, with some truly offensive comments on here.
Come on, you should ALWAYS assume your sex partner is positive. Johnson should not have lied, but at the same time, the sex partners HAVE TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY for unprotected/unPrEPed sex.
Also, people are dismissing condoms, but at the very least, they are extremely effective, along with PrEP and effective HIV med usage. None of that was happening here.
The penalties Johnson faces are draconian and utterly unjust and indefensible.
Carlos Maggard
Yikes
BlackDancer
@Spike: it said he was “barely literate” and “naive” about things pertaining to HIV. Not barely literate period. No one’s gonna graduate high school or be admitted to a university without being literate.
aliengod
@Jonathan Lund: Ditto!
Chris
This is not about Poz shaming or responsibility for using condoms all the time. It’s about two consenting adults engaging in sex. The only problem is that one of the adults could not provide informed consent because the other adult not only withheld information but also he lied when asked. IMHO, this has now shifted from involving two consenting adults to rape.
t0ph3
OMG people. Stop trying to redefine rape. Rape requires proving intent to do harm against the known wishes of the other party. You cannot prove that occurred. And it’s sad, yes, but the infected partners cannot blame this person. It’s terrible that young people think they can just take any stranger at their word. You should assume everyone has something and protect yourself. Or don’t. But don’t blame other people for the consequences of your choices. America is so fixated on vengeance. Someone must be punished for something bad that happened to them. It’s a disease, not a drunk-driving-accident-slash-mass-shooting. And if anyone’s to blame, it is the health workers who didn’t educate the man after he was notified he was positive, didn’t get him in counseling and treatment, didn’t make sure he started taking antiretrovirals that would’ve lowered his viral load to the point that it would’ve been unlikely anyone else would be infected if/when he did have unprotected sex. Sad stories all round. Not everything is black and white. Not every story has victims and villains. The world isn’t that simple.
Merv
@Chris: Exactly! This should be considered a form of rape, which is defined as sex without consent.
It’s disgusting that the usual contingent of morally handicapped apologists for sociopathy are making their appearance. I have to assume that most of them are sociopaths themselves. They’ve probably left a trail of dead bodies in their wake going back decades.
Just so everyone is clear, the fact that someone behaves naively, unwisely or recklessly does not excuse maliciously abusing their trust. If someone lends you their car, it’s OK if you accidentally get in a crash. It’s not OK if you intentionally push it over a cliff. If someone leaves the front door of their home open or unlocked, it’s not OK to burglarize their house. If a woman walks alone at night in a sketchy part of town, it’s not OK to rob or rape her. These basic lessons of morality will probably come as a surprise to a number of people on this thread.
Reminder: Lambda Legal is working hard to make sure that sociopaths like this @sshole who intentionally infect people get off scot-free. Don’t give them another dime.
Stache99
@Merv: “It’s disgusting that the usual contingent of morally handicapped apologists for sociopathy are making their appearance. I have to assume that most of them are sociopaths themselves. They’ve probably left a trail of dead bodies in their wake going back decades.”
What a drama queen. Lol
Merv
@Stache99:
“Lol”
Yeah, intentionally infecting someone with a deadly virus is just hilarious!
Eli Grove
And if he woulda just took his meds this would not have been an issue
ksterlings
As someone who is 1) HIV positive and 2) a bit of a slut. I can say that from this side of the fence there is a HUGE education gap.
I post my status in any profile/ad that I put online and am openly poz. My viral load is undetectable. Still…I run into people DAILY that don’t comprehend. Legally my obligation is to notify my partners. Where does that “notification” requirement end? If I place an ad clearly stating I am poz, and the person doesn’t care to pay attention. Am I responsible for the exposure? Even in face to face situations when I have told people that I am positive they, for whatever reason, don’t comprehend. Without a signed and notarized consent form where is my proof?
Assume EVERYONE is Positive.
I only played wrapped when I popped poz, I assume the condom broke, I assume the guy didn’t know. At the end of the day it was on ME for slutting around. I know people that have been ass up in a bath house taking loads…and are somehow amazed that they got HIV. Really?
blessingyou
@Victor Barry: Exactly!!!
SportGuy
People really need to start assuming everyone is poz and use condoms 100% of the time, no matter what a guy says!
notevenwrong
We have to remember these are accusations by prosecutors in Missouri, a state whose government demonizes all gay sex as sick and considers all gay people to be monsters, never mind HIV+ people. HIV+ people, according to this law, can be prosecuted for consensual sex, with draconian penalties, and we really don’t know if there was proper consent, despite the allegations. Also remember that allegations often don’t have much to do with what really happened.
jason smeds
Why is it that only men get accused of spreading HIV and never women? It seems to be an anti-male thing.
jason smeds
HIV is not as serious as it was once thought to be, by the way. Magic Johnson has been HIV positive for 24 years and is as fit as a fiddle.
Face it – HIV was a scare encouraged by Christian fundamentalists and narcissistic gay men who love the idea of being thought of as sick and “different”.
UltimateSin
“You told me you were clean.”
“What? I took a shower”.
If you can’t be direct with your questions then I don’t feel bad if this is the kind of response you get.
Stache99
@ksterlings: Ha. Then there’s the ones looking for anonymous loads and they have in their profile DDF UB2. You’re just like WTF.
I just assume that people that play unsafe ie no condoms are either looking for HIV or already have it. You don’t get to come back and play some kind of victim.
Blackceo
What the wrestler did was absolutely horrible and should suffer the full extent of consequences. Maybe these guys were naive or just not very well educated, or just too damn horny to say no but there’s no way Im “taking your word” that you are clean, especially for a hookup. It’s not even something I’d bother asking cuz I’m strapping up either way. I don’t care if you even showed me receipts from the doctor or a test result. Documents can be manipulated and I didn’t go with you and we didn’t get our results together. If I don’t know you at all Im not putting my life at risk. No dick or ass is that good.
Desert Boy
@jason smeds: Face it, with this post, there is no doubt you are profoundly mentally ill and someone who espouses dangerous comments.
Bob LaBlah
It is regrettable this happened but keep in mind, people will and DO say anything. Stopping short of pulling out a needle and performing an HIV test right there on the spot how else does one “verify” this person is telling the truth?
This is one jury that I could NOT be on because the question lingering in my mind for the ones making the charges against him is this: You met him WHERE? In a bath house, drag ball party (which he was known to be a participant of BQ Sex Siren), online cruising site? How many OTHERS did you meet and they too said they were negative but were positive? What proof do you bring to the court saying he DIDN’T tell you? You verbally asked and he said no and you believed it not knowing who nor nothing about this kid but the fact that he turned you on?
No, this is one jury I could not be on. Sorry about what happened but I say you get what you cruise for.
notevenwrong
@Bob LaBlah, even performing the test right there (which can be done in 20 minutes, by the way, with saliva test kits available in your local ph&rmacy) is not foolproof, because of the window period during which a person may be infectious but not yet have antibodies.
Merv
@notevenwrong: The last two sociopaths that were prosecuted had tested positive long ago, so they probably would have tested positive even with the home test. You probably don’t even have to go through with the test. They would run like dogs even at the mere suggestion. It’s probably a good followup question to weed out the sociopaths, even if you don’t actually have a test at hand. Use a lie to weed out liars.
SportGuy
@notevenwrong: Exactly! That is why condoms should be used 100% of the time or no sex at all!
Bob LaBlah
Lets not forget that over the years MULTIPLE strains of HIV have been detected. I do not believe for one second that the possible DOES NOT exist that certain strains of HIV can not linger for years undetected and suddenly appear. We are dealing with a disease that to this day I believe was man made.
If certain “elements” of society didn’t care less about infecting black men with syphilis and left them infected for thirty years so “see” the effects it would have what’s to stop some brilliant religious fanatic on a mission from god to invent a disease that would wipe out a certain part of humanity they have been bred to hate? Nearly ALL HIV infected people have to turn to the government in some way or another to get the drugs needed to stay alive. Drug companies are making a killing off of this fact…………I get down off of my soapbox at this time but I ask ALL of you to stop and think long and hard about the cause, effect and PROFIT this disease has brought.