Fraudulent Medford 'student' jailed

Mail Tribune (Medford, OR — Wayback)

2018-05-19

Document text

A 21-year-old man on probation for third-degree rape has been arrested while posing as a student at North Medford High School. Medford police arrested Anthony Michael Kirkman Monday on a Josephine County warrant stemming from a first-degree burglary case, said Medford police Lt. Mike Moran. Officers also discovered Kirkman had violated his probation, which prohibited him from having contact with persons under 18. Police continue to investigate the case and said additional charges might be filed later. Police are concerned that Kirkman could have had sexual contact with students he met at school, Moran said. According to Jackson County Circuit Court records, Kirkman pleaded guilty to a charge of third-degree rape in August and Judge Lorenzo Meija sentenced him to five years of probation. Third-degree rape involves sex with a person under 16. Moran said police plan to interview students to find out whom Kirkman hung out with while attending school. We will send additional charges to the district attorney if they are warranted, especially if we find sexual abuse victims, Moran said. School officials suspected something wasn't right about Kirkman after he got in trouble in a classroom this week, Moran said. On Monday, Kirkman, who enrolled at North Medford about three weeks ago as a 17-year-old named Anthony Michael Jones, was disruptive and disrespectful to a teacher. He was sent out of the classroom for disciplinary action, Moran said. The deans and vice principals handling the incident sensed something was off, Moran said. A vice principal contacted Ernie Whiteman, a school resource officer, who discovered Kirkman wasn't whom he claimed to be. As Whiteman and Kirkman talked, the officer discovered the false student's real name, then found the warrant for his arrest. Kirkman, whose last known address was in Cave Junction, was lodged in Jackson County Jail on Monday then transferred to the Josephine County Jail, Moran said. When enrolling at the high school, Kirkman gave a nonexistent address on Spring Street as his home and claimed to be transferring from an out-of-state school. Police allege that he forged his mother's signature on enrollment documents. Police plan to continue investigating the possible forgery on enrollment documents, Moran said. They also are looking into a possible identity theft charge because Kirkman assumed a false identity to get a benefit ' public education. He also received a lunch card at a reduced rate, so he could face charges of theft of services, Moran said. Moran praised school officials for noting discrepancies in Kirkman's records and conversations and for quickly contacting police. Public education is a benefit open to anyone who qualifies, he said. There's no background check. I'm pleased with our school officials and their discipline policies, which strive to make schools safe. In Josephine County, Kirkman faces a charge that he failed to appear on a probation-violation charge. According to Josephine County court records, he was sentenced to three years of probation after pleading no contest to a first-degree burglary charge in April 2001. In August 2002, authorities claimed he had violated his probation, but he failed to appear in court to answer the charge. A warrant was issued Sept. 30, court records show. Reach reporter Anita Burke at 776-4459 or e-mail .