St. John’s University is again confronting allegations of sexual assault after an 18-year-old student was charged this month in connection with an incident in early December at the affiliated College of Saint Benedict. Prosecutors in Stearns County District Court charged John Anderson Kocher of Chanhassen on Feb. 20 with third- and fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct, marking the second criminal sexual-assault case involving a student at the schools in less than a month.
What the complaint alleges
According to the Star Tribune, the criminal complaint states that on the night spanning Dec. 6–7, Kocher missed his bus and was invited to sleep in a dorm room. Once there, the complaint says he began kissing the woman despite her telling him to stop. She later awoke around 10 a.m. and, on Dec. 9, sought medical care at St. Cloud Hospital, where she provided evidence for a sexual-assault kit, the paper reports.
Under police questioning, the complaint says Kocher acknowledged that he did not ask the woman for permission to have sex and that he sent messages apologizing afterward. In one message quoted in the charging document, he wrote in part, “I never meant at all to do anything without you permitting me.”
Statewide numbers and campus context
The new charges arrive as Minnesota colleges continue to confront reports of sexual violence on campus. A report from the Minnesota Office of Higher Education shows that institutions statewide reported 300 sexual-assault incidents during calendar year 2023, with the College of Saint Benedict/St. John’s accounting for 16 of those cases. Roughly 40% of reports across the state led to an institutional investigation.
The OHE report also notes that many people who report assaults choose not to pursue campus disciplinary processes at all, a decision that directly affects how many cases move forward and how they are ultimately resolved.
A month earlier: a separate arrest
Just weeks before Kocher was charged, 19-year-old student Brian M. Kimithi was arrested on Jan. 29 in a separate case. He was charged with first- and third-degree criminal sexual conduct after an alleged assault two days earlier at a residence on College Avenue in St. Joseph. The Star Tribune reported that officers photographed scratches and bruising and that a judge set Kimithi’s bail at $400,000 without conditions or $200,000 with conditions. College administrators said Kimithi was no longer enrolled.
Legal implications
In Minnesota, third- and fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct are felony charges that address nonconsensual sexual penetration and sexual contact under different legally defined circumstances. The precise elements of each offense and the potential penalties are set out in state law.
For the statutory language and the elements prosecutors weigh in such cases, see Minnesota Statute 609.344 and Minnesota Statute 609.345, which outline the third- and fourth-degree charges cited in the complaints.
What happens next
Kocher was charged by summons and is waiting for his first court appearance to be scheduled. Kimithi’s case remains active in Stearns County courts. In both matters, the charges are allegations that have not been proven in court.
The county attorney will decide whether to file formal charges and pursue prosecution. College officials have said they are working with law enforcement and are offering support services to students as the investigations move forward.
