North Miami tennis instructor goes to prison for molesting girls

A South Florida tennis instructor will spend 10 years in prison after pleading guilty Wednesday to molesting two female students.

Paul Johnson, 51, accepted the plea deal just after a jury was selected to try him in Miami-Dade circuit court. After he leaves prison, Johnson must register as a sex offender.

Johnson was a tennis instructor at Claude Pepper Park in North Miami, where police say back in 2013 he gave a lesson to a 14-year-old girl. When rain cut the practice short, Johnson drove her home, asked to use the bathroom, then forced himself on her.

The girl’s mother came and stopped the attack. DNA linked him to the crime. A second underage teen came forward after Johnson’s arrest.

Johnson also taught tennis at Tropical Park in West Miami-Dade. The plea deal was approved by the two girls and their families.

The plea deal spares the victims having to testify – and also be questioned directly by Johnson himself. He had fired his lawyer and planned to represent himself at trial.

This story was originally published February 10, 2016 at 3:12 PM with the headline "North Miami tennis instructor goes to prison for molesting girls."