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Former Miss Hall’s teacher from Norfolk pleads not guilty to sexual assault charges

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A former Miss Hall’s School science teacher from Norfolk pleaded not guilty Thursday, Sept. 10, to three charges stemming from the alleged sexual assault of a student more than three decades ago, according to authorities.

Matthew Johnson, 70, was arraigned in Berkshire Superior Court on one count of assault with intent to rape and two counts of indecent assault and battery on a person over age 14, according to the Berkshire District Attorney’s office. A grand jury indicted him Aug. 20.

Johnson was released on personal recognizance. A pretrial hearing is scheduled for Oct. 28 in Berkshire Superior Court.

Johnson taught science at Miss Hall’s School, a private boarding school in Pittsfield, from 1993 to 1994.

The alleged victim was a Miss Hall’s student at the time, prosecutors said.

Johnson is the third former Miss Hall’s staff member to be indicted in connection with investigations into alleged abuse at the school.

Former history teacher Matthew Rutledge, who worked at the school from 1991 until his resignation in 2024, was indicted in April and has pleaded not guilty to three counts of rape involving two former students.

Meanwhile, Jeannie Norris, former head of school from 1996 to 2012, was arraigned on one count of reckless endangerment of a child in August. She has also pleaded not guilty.

Christian Murray
Executive Editor

Christian Murray is executive editor of The Lakeville Journal and The Millerton News. A graduate of the Columbia Journalism School, he is a veteran journalist, founding the Queens Post and its network of neighborhood news sites—including the Sunnyside Post, Astoria Post, LIC Post and Jackson Heights Post—and helping pioneer hyperlocal digital journalism in New York City. Before joining LJMN in 2025, he served as managing editor at Schneps Media, overseeing amNewYork, the Queens Courier, the Bronx Times and other local publications. Earlier in his career, Murray was a political reporter for Newsday and a business reporter for Reuters. A native of New Zealand, he says northwest Connecticut reminds him of the landscapes where he grew up—a connection that made the region feel like home from the start.

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