John David Roy Atchison (August 28, 1954 – October 5, 2007) was an American

assistant U.S. Attorney An assistant United States attorney (AUSA) is an official career civil service position in the U.S. Department of Justice composed of lawyers working under the U.S. attorney of each U.S. federal judicial district. They represent the federal gov ...

in Florida's northern district who was arrested on suspicion of soliciting sex with a 5-year-old girl. He was also a volunteer coach for girls' softball and basketball teams, and president of a youth sports association. He was arrested in a sex sting operation, and charged with "enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity using the Internet", "aggravated sexual abuse," and "traveling across state lines to have sex with someone under the age of 12". Atchison committed

suicide by hanging Suicide by hanging is the intentional killing of oneself (suicide) via suspension from an anchor-point such as an overhead beam or hook, by a rope or cord or by jumping from a height with a noose around the neck. Hanging is often considered to ...

himself in his prison cell in

Milan, Michigan Milan ( or ) is a city in Monroe and Washtenaw counties in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 6,079 at the 2020 census. The community was settled as early as 1831. Milan incorporated as a village in 1885 and much later as a city ...

, three weeks later.

Early life and education

Atchison earned a bachelor's degree from the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...

, and a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

degree from

Samford University Samford University is a Private university, private Christian university in Homewood, Alabama, United States. It was founded by Baptist Church, Baptists in 1841 as Howard College and located until 1887 in Marion, Alabama. It is governed by an in ...

Cumberland Law School in

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Alabama, Jefferson County. The population was 200,733 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List ...

. Early on, he lived in

Pensacola, Florida Pensacola ( ) is a city in the Florida panhandle in the United States. It is the county seat and only incorporated city, city in Escambia County, Florida, Escambia County. The population was 54,312 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...

Career

Atchison was admitted to the

Florida Bar The Florida Bar is the integrated, or unified bar organization for the state of Florida. It is the third largest such bar in the United States.

in June 1984, and to the Georgia Bar in June 1985. He worked as an Assistant

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...

federal prosecutor in the

U.S. Attorney's Office United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...

, in northern Florida, working primarily on tax and financial crime cases. He was also a volunteer coach for girls’ softball and basketball teams in his hometown of

Gulf Breeze, Florida Gulf Breeze is a city in Santa Rosa County, Florida. It is located between Downtown Pensacola and Pensacola Beach, and is part of the Pensacola Metropolitan Area. The population was 6,340 at the 2020 census, up from 5,763 at the 2010 census ...

, and president of a youth sports association there, the Gulf Breeze Athletic Association. In the association, girls as young as 4 could participate in a soccer program, and its programs included cheerleading, basketball, football, soccer, and softball.

Arrest

On September 16, 2007, Atchison was arrested at the

Detroit Metropolitan Airport Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport is the primary international airport serving Detroit and its Metro Detroit, surrounding metropolitan area, in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located in Romulus, Michigan, Romulus, a Detroit suburb ...

in a

sex crime Sex and the law deals with the regulation by law of human sexual activity. Sex laws vary from one place or jurisdiction to another, and have varied over time. Unlawful sexual acts are called sex crimes. Some laws regarding sexual activity are ...

sting operation In law enforcement, a sting operation is a deceptive operation designed to catch a person attempting to commit a crime. A typical sting will have an undercover law enforcement officer, detective, or co-operative member of the public play a rol ...

undertaken by the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

and the

Macomb County Macomb County ( ) is a county on the eastern shore of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is part of the Detroit metropolitan area, bordering Detroit to the north and containing many of its northern suburbs. Its seat of government is Mt. Clemens, a ...

Sheriff's Department. Authorities said that he had chatted online for two weeks with an undercover detective posing as a mother offering to let men have sex with her young daughter. He wrote that he wanted to have oral, vaginal, and anal sex with the girl. Atchison promised that he would not hurt the girl during sex, writing: “I’m always gentle and loving ... I’ve done it plenty." At the time of his arrest, he was carrying presents for his intended victim, including a doll and a pair of hoop earrings. Also in his possession was a jar of

petroleum jelly Petroleum jelly, petrolatum (), white petrolatum, soft paraffin, or multi-hydrocarbon, CAS number 8009-03-8, is a semi-solid mixture of hydrocarbons (with carbon numbers mainly higher than 25), originally promoted as a topical ointment for i ...

that he planned to use in the sexual encounter. He was charged with three felonies. They were: "enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity using the Internet", "aggravated

sexual abuse Sexual abuse or sex abuse is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using physical force, or by taking advantage of another. It often consists of a persistent pattern of sexual assaults. The offender is re ...

," and "traveling across state lines to have sex with a child under the age of 12".

Suicide

Two weeks after his arrest, Atchison tried to kill himself by hanging himself with a bed sheet in his jail cell in the Sanilac County Jail in

Sandusky, Michigan Sandusky is the most populous city and county seat of Sanilac County, Michigan. The population was 2,679 at the 2010 census. Geography * According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land. * It is considered ...

, about 75 miles north of

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

, on September 20, 2007. Atchison had been removed from a

suicide watch Suicide watch (sometimes shortened to SW) is an intensive monitoring process used to ensure that any person cannot attempt suicide. Usually the term is used in reference to inmates or patients in a prison, hospital, psychiatric hospital or militar ...

the previous day after assuring his lawyer and a judge that he would not harm himself. He was not injured in the suicide attempt, which another inmate reported about 4 a.m. On October 5, 2007, Atchison committed

himself in his one-person prison cell in the special housing unit, for prisoners separated from the general population, of a prison in

, about 36 miles southwest of Detroit, where he was on suicide watch. He was 53 years old.

Personal life

Atchison was married and had three children, and he and his family lived in

, near Pensacola.

References

External links

''Atchison v. Cruz''; "Report and Recommendation"
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan, Southern Division, Case No. 10-10545, Gerald Rosen, District Judge, R. Steven Whalen, Magistrate Judge, January 24, 2011 {{DEFAULTSORT:Atchison, John David R. 1954 births 2007 deaths 2007 suicides People from Chapel Hill, North Carolina People from Pensacola, Florida People from Gulf Breeze, Florida United States attorneys for the Northern District of Florida Georgia (U.S. state) lawyers People who died by suicide in prison custody People charged with sex crimes Suicides by hanging in Michigan American people who died in prison custody Prisoners who died in United States federal government detention University of Florida alumni Cumberland School of Law alumni Male suicides 20th-century American lawyers