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Deobra Redden, 31, was sentenced to 26 to 65 years for attacking Clark County District Court Judge Mary Kay Holthus in the courtroom in January.
Deobra Redden attacked Judge Mary Kay Holthus during his sentencing in a felony battery case in January. (Photo: AP)
A video went viral showing a man leaping over a desk and attacking a judge in a Las Vegas courtroom in January during a hearing in a felony battery case. That man has now been sentenced to decades in prison for the act.
Deobra Redden, 31, was ordered on Tuesday (local time) to serve between 26 and 65 years in a Nevada prison for the attack on Clark County District Court Judge Mary Kay Holthus, according to local media reports. Redden pleaded guilty but mentally ill in September to attempted murder and other charges.
A viral courtroom video captured the violent incident as Redden leapt over the 4-foot-high bench and grabbed Holthus’ hair and she fell back from her seat against a wall. Holthus suffered some injuries but was not hospitalised, courthouse officials said. She testified later that she feared for her life when Redden attacked her. Holthus went back to work the next day
The defendant had to be wrestled off her by her clerk, Michael Lasso, and several court and jail officers, some of whom threw punches. Lasso was treated for cuts on his hands and a marshal was hospitalized for a dislocated shoulder and a gash on his forehead.
Redden’s defense lawyer Carl Arnold has said his client was not taking his prescribed medication to control his diagnosed schizophrenia at the time of the attack. Arnold said Redden’s plea in September “reflects a delicate balance between accepting responsibility for a regrettable incident and recognizing the impact of Mr Redden’s untreated mental illness at the time.”
‘I’m Not An Evil Guy’: Defendant
Redden said in court Tuesday that he did not intend to kill Holthus. “I’m not a bad person, I’m not an evil guy. I’m not making excuses for my actions, but I’m saying I’m not a bad person and I know that I did not intend to kill Mary Kay Holthus,” he told the court.
Prosecutors read a statement from Holthus, where she said, “He made a conscious decision to kill me and made every effort to succeed. If he had his way, he’d be facing a sentence of life without the possibility of parole for murder.”
Redden was jailed on $54,000 bail in connection with the attack but refused to return to court the next day on the new charges, so a judge rescheduled his next appearance in that case for Tuesday. Records show he faces charges including extortion, coercion with force and battery on a protected person, referring to the judge and the officers who came to her aid.
Redden was serving prison time on the attempted battery charge, which Holthus sentenced him to as the initial hearing continued on January 8. However, District Court Judge Susan Johnson declined his attorney’s pleas for a concurrent prison sentence and gave him an aggregate prison term of 26-65 years.
“It was not just retaliation or an attack on Judge Holthus. It was also an attack on the judiciary,” the judge said, adding that doctors who evaluated Redden concluded he knew between “right and wrong”. Redden will be eligible for parole sometime after 2050 with credit for time served, as per reports.
(with agency inputs)
- Location :
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
