Crime - Suspect in Johnson case breaks silence

“I didn’t hide from anything because I didn’t feel I had anything to
hide from.”
-- Henry Reichert

By Pamela Roth
Staff reporter

After nearly 10 years, one of the primary suspects in the murder of Jane Johnson and her eight-year-old daughter is breaking his silence.
Sept. 3 marked the 10th anniversary of the Johnson murders. The pair were discovered in their partially burned home on Royalite Way following a house fire.
Police originally ruled Jane and her daughter Cathryn died of smoke inhalation, however, autopsy results later determined the 36-year-old pregnant mother was stabbed before the house was lit on fire.
Even though police have interviewed hundreds of suspects during the last decade, the person responsible for the Johnsons’ deaths remains a mystery. The unsolved crime has not only been frustrating for the Johnson family, but also for Jane’s ex-boyfriend, Henry Reichert.
Reichert, who was, and possibly still is, one of the suspects in the case, has been trying to live life as normal as possible with his family in the foothills.
But as friends and family agreed to undergo polygraph tests years ago to prove their innocence in the double homicide, Reichert refused at the advice of his lawyer, raising suspicion from police and several other members of the community.
Even to this day, if Reichert was asked to undergo a polygraph again, he said the answer would still be no due to the questionable accuracy of the test.
Police would not confirm if Reichert has been eliminated as a suspect, but as far as Reichert is concerned, he is not a murderer.
“I have been under a microscope as much as you can be investigated,” said the 47-year-old contractor. “I have been investigated so thoroughly a polygraph at this point is redundant. There is nothing there as far as I am concerned. There is not going to be any charges laid against me because I am not guilty.”
Having two young children of his own, Reichert remained in the area after the murders and tried to continued a normal life, even though members of the community accused him of committing the deadly crime.
According to Reichert, his name was the only one mentioned to the public as a suspect, even though he claims there wasn’t any evidence against him.
The stress of the case at times has been terrible, said Reichert, but there was nothing he could do except wait for the storm to pass with the comfort of family and friends.
“I couldn’t avoid it. I was forced into it,” said Reichert. “I didn’t hide from anything because I didn’t feel I had anything to hide from. I’ll let the police do their job and they are going to do what they are going to do, but you have to move on with your life. You can’t dwell on it or your life falls apart because of it.”
As for the tragic day in question, Reichert tries his best to forget.
Instead, he tries to focus on the memory of Jane, who he described as a beautiful person who didn’t deserve to die.
Before their untimely death, Cathryn was about to enter Grade 3 at Turner Valley School; Jane worked with special needs children at the Millarville Community School and had been dating Reichert for four years.
The Calgary Major Crimes Unit, along with the assistance of the Turner Valley RCMP, is still actively investigating the case and receives approximately 30 to 40 tips from the public throughout the course of the year.
Although police feel they are getting closer to solving the case and have persons of interest, there are no prime suspects at this time.
Nonetheless, Reichert hopes the killer will be found soon in order for Jane and Cathryn’s loved ones to find closure once and for all.
“It’s just more frustration we haven’t been able to close this thing yet,” he said. “We’ve all been hurt a lot over this, so I don’t see it is necessary for anybody to suffer anymore than they already have. In a way it seems like it was just yesterday, but in another way it seems like it’s been a long time.”

Finger lickin’ good

Scott Ballance prepares a horde of ribs for the inaugural Rotary Rib Fest at the Okotoks Curling Club prior to Friday’s performance of the Okotoks Indoor Pro Rodeo. The rib fest replaced the rib cook-off which was previously held downtown. The change looked to be successful as a hungry crowd lined up for the ribs all evening. photo by John Barlow

Education - Busing issue not over for RDL

By Darlene Casten
Staff reporter

Students who aren’t satisfied with the school closest to their home are still having transportation issues.
A decision to axe a clause that kept buses running for students attending schools outside of their boundaries is a done deal according to the Foothills School Division’s board of trustees.
However, for many residents the grandfather clause is anything but a dead issue.
Foothills School Division trustees will meet for the first time to discuss the 2006/2007 school year today, but the busing issue is not on the agenda.
Red Deer Lake resident Jay Lyons is one of many residents who wants the issue brought back to the table.
“If the school board thinks this issue is resolved by one meeting this summer they are off target by a long shot,” said Lyons. “They made a commitment to meet with the community and they have not done that. This issue is not dead.”
Some residents have also discussed taking legal action against the school division to reinstate the previous busing policy.
Last spring trustees made a decision to axe a grandfather clause that provided busing to students attending schools of their choice — schools outside their designated boundary.
The opening of Heritage Heights School will see a number of DeWinton area students and those living west of Red Deer Lake, rerouted from Red Deer Lake School to the new school on Dunbow Road.
Parents vowed to fight the move, hiring a lawyer this summer to examine how the school board made the decision.
Division superintendent Jim McLellan said administration met with two parents and Okotoks lawyer Charles Dixon this summer. At that meeting, McLellan said it was explained that there were several options open to students still wishing to attend Red Deer Lake where busing is not automatically provided.
“We told them that they can get to a bus stop in the area that is designated to that school or if a bus goes through their area en route to the designated area they may be able to get on that bus,” McLellan said.
In the majority of cases the busing issue has been resolved, he said.
“We are resolving some of those situations,” McLellan said. “Most of these kids are going to the schools they are provided transit for.”
Trustee chairman Jerry Muelaner said he has no plans to revisit the busing clause.
“It is done,” Muelaner said. “We just can’t afford to do it.”
Issues raised by parents were addressed at the meeting this summer, he added.
“We don’t just drop kids,” Muelaner said. “If there was no one there to pick them up they would simply stay on the bus.”
One suggestion to charge all students for busing was rejected by the school division, Muelaner said.
“We are not prepared to look at that,” he said.
Students who attend a school other than the one they are designated to attend are charged $150 for transportation.
According to Muelaner, the money previously spent on busing students to their school of choice would be better spent on cutting down the ride time for some rural students.
“We can now start to streamline things so that some of these kids who are way out west of Longview and way out in Cayley aren’t on the bus for an hour,” Muelaner said.
The Foothills School Division spends $3.4 million annually on transportation costs. An additional $120,000 of provincial funding announced earlier this year was not enough money to keep the school of choice buses running, said division treasurer Drew Chipman.