Monday, Oct. 25, 2004 | 11:08 a.m.
Federal prosecutors have filed a motion appealing the release of a Nellis Air Force Base master sergeant who prosecutors say admitted to the FBI that he wanted to pull a pellet gun on police to force them to shoot him.
Earlier this month Kevin Jay Johnson was arrested in connection with a bank robbery. Prosecutors allege he told authorities he had turned to crime to pay for his compulsive gambling.
The most recent court document in the case, filed Friday, argues that U.S. Magistrate Judge Lawrence Leavitt, who released Johnson on his own recognizance at his initial detention hearing earlier this month, was not given all of the information by prosecutors -- including allegations that Johnson wanted to commit "suicide by cop."
"In this instance, Judge Leavitt simply did not receive information critical to making an informed decision on the appropriateness of pretrial release," the motion states. "The omission on the part of the government should not automatically grant the defendant immunity from ... review of the matter.
The motion also notes that authorities believe "the defendant is a serious danger to the community and poses substantial risk of flight."
U.S. District Judge David Hagen is scheduled to hear the motion Tuesday afternoon, according to the court clerk.
Natalie Collins, a spokeswoman U.S. attorney's office in Las Vegas, said this morning that the motion states the office's position and that the office had no further comment about case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christina Brown, who is prosecuting the case did not immediately return calls seeking comment this morning.
A federal indictment charges Johnson, 40, with eight bank robberies that occurred in Las Vegas and Henderson in the past four months, taking more than $10,200 between June 17 and Oct. 8.
According to the government's appeal of his release, Johnson told FBI agents on Oct. 12 of his plans to force officers to shoot him, four days after his arrest by Metro Police. Three pellet guns were found in Johnson's car at the time of his arrest, authorities allege.
"He states that his intention was to pull the guns on police to initiate suicide by cop, and explained this as a way to cease the robbery spree over which he evidently felt he had no control," the motion states. "The defendant stated that he committed the robberies as a means to acquire money to support a compulsive gambling habit and resultant debt."
If convicted, Johnson faces up to 25 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on each of the eight bank robbery charges.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Russell Marsh represented the government at Johnson's detention hearing before Leavitt, but neither he nor a representative of U.S. Pretrial Services mentioned that Johnson had allegedly contemplated forcing police to kill him, the appeal states. It adds that it is unclear if pretrial services personnel were aware of that allegation.
Johnson, who continues to work at Nellis but was otherwise ordered by Leavitt to remain under house arrest at his home off the base, appeared in federal court before Magistrate Judge Peggy Leen on Wednesday to face the charges in the indictment.
Brown, who the appeal states was more familiar with the case than Marsh, handled the hearing and asked Leen to order Johnson detained.
Leen questioned whether she had the legal authority to rescind Leavitt's release order and released Johnson under the same conditions Leavitt had imposed, adding that Johnson was forbidden from entering a gambling establishment, the motion states.
The robberies include three Nevada State Bank branches in Las Vegas, one Bank of the West branch in Henderson, three Wells Fargo branches in Las Vegas and one First National Bank branch in Las Vegas.
Johnson was arrested Oct. 8 after Metro Police located him through a tracking device that had been planted on the money stolen in one of the Nevada State Bank robberies.
Police spotted Johnson in the area of Sahara Avenue and Paradise Road and, when they tried to pull him over, he tried to get away by backing up south on Paradise, Sgt. Gayland Hammack of Metro's robbery section, said.
Johnson's vehicle collided with a patrol car that had blocked him, and he headed north on Paradise and turned east onto Sahara with police pursuing him, Hammack said.
Just west of Joe W. Brown Drive, a detective pushed the rear wheel of Johnson's car with the front bumper of his police car, spinning Johnson out.
Despite his car stalling, Johnson was able to restart it and fled again. Shortly after restarting the car Johnson jumped from it while it was moving and was hit by a pursuing officer's car, Hammack said.
More than 10 Metro and FBI units including a Metro helicopter chased Johnson, the appeal notes.
During a search of the car, police found the tracking device between the two front seats and found clothes that matched those worn during the Oct. 8 robbery when $805 was stolen, according to the arrest report.
Johnson was hospitalized from Oct. 8 through Oct. 12 and was interviewed by FBI agents before being released from the hospital. During the interview Johnson also allegedly told agents that his wife had cashed out her retirement savings to pay of some of his gambling debt.
Despite the help from his wife he continued gambling, and his wife and children moved from Las Vegas to another city in Nevada for reasons Johnson said were unrelated to his compulsive gambling, the appeal states.
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