Jungblom Return Downplayed Ex-Counselor Released From Prison

Charles Jungblom can’t expect a hearty welcome if he returns to the Lincoln County town whose image he soiled.

But neither will the convicted sex offender be shunned, many town residents said Wednesday.

The former high school counselor was released from a federal prison Tuesday, after serving more than four years for hiring a student to make a sexually explicit movie.

“The coffee-shop talk is that we don’t care” if he returns, said one retired businessman who declined to give his name. “It’s over. He’s paid his time and it’s up to him to put his life straight.”

But two of Jungblom’s accusers, Heather Giles and Alicia Quintana, “are very scared” about his return, said their attorney, Dick Eymann. Quintana moved from Lincoln County when she heard Jungblom was being released, Eymann said.

Jungblom pleaded guilty to one count of sexual exploitation of a child and apologized to the community in May 1994. Two other counts were dismissed. He was sentenced to 57 months in prison. U.S. District Judge Justin Quackenbush agreed to let him serve the time at Geiger Corrections Center, a minimum-security prison west of Spokane.

But the severity of Jungblom’s crime and the length of his sentence prompted the Federal Bureau of Prisons to place him in the medium-security Safford Corrections Facility in southeastern Arizona. The family of Giles also asked that he be sent out of the area.

Federal records show Jungblom was released at 8:05 a.m. Tuesday, after serving 51 months. He received six months’ credit for good behavior.

Four years ago, the case garnered national media attention and split Davenport between those who believed Jungblom was to blame and those who said Quintana and the other accusers shared the blame. To some outside the community, Davenport became “Davenporn.”

Neither Jungblom nor his wife could be reached for comment Wednesday, but Arlene Jungblom told the weekly Davenport Times last week that her husband eventually will return to their home.

Jungblom’s federal probation officer would say only that he plans to settle somewhere in Eastern Washington, outside Spokane. He must meet regularly with the probation officer for three years, cannot have contact with minors unless another adult is present and must pay the state $20,000 in court-ordered restitution.

Davenport School District Superintendent Jim Howard said the district asked that Jungblom be forbidden from entering school property or contacting school employees while they’re working. It was not clear Wednesday whether that request was granted.

Otherwise, Howard said, “we’re not making this (Jungblom’s release) an issue. It’s business as usual.”

The case cost the district’s insurance company $5 million after a jury in a civil trial ruled that district administrators did little to investigate Giles’ complaints or protect her from Jungblom. She accused Jungblom of repeatedly raping her and luring her into making sexual videos. In an out-of-court settlement, the insurance company paid $4 million to Giles and her parents, and $1 million to Quintana, Eymann said.

At least a half-dozen girls in the school district came forward and alleged that Jungblom made inappropriate sexual advances, including attempting to lure them into the modeling business.

Arlene Jungblom still works for the district as a teacher’s aide, and also tutors students at her home during the summer.

“We really love her,” said Sabrina Warwick, whose third-grade daughter is one of Arlene Jungblom’s summer students. “But I won’t let Becke go over there anymore. Arlene is free to come here.”

Another Davenport resident, Denise Liebing, said she doubts the town’s tolerance of Jungblom will last. Town members may not be talking about him now, but they harbor deep-seated resentment, she said.

“Once he’s in town, it will stir things up,” Liebing said. “I don’t think this has ever been settled.”

Staff writer Bill Morlin contributed to this report.