(LA) Man who shot daughter's molester denied parole

[Drizzt]

Man who shot daughter's molester denied parole

Mandy M. Goodnight / The Town Talk
Posted on February 15, 2003

ST. GABRIEL - Allie "Bo" Johnson Jr. will have to wait two more years before coming home.

Johnson, 47, is serving time for shooting the man who molested his then 12-year-old daughter in 1998.

The Parole Board denied his request Friday in a hearing at Hunt Correctional Center in St. Gabriel.

The decision guarantees that he will miss his daughter play in her Senior Night basketball game and high school graduation this May.

A Parole Board spokeswoman said the three-member panel unanimously denied Johnson's parole. She did not say why. She said Johnson could request another parole hearing in two years.

Johnson's wife, Lenora, who now lives in Oakdale, has been fighting to bring Allie Johnson home since he was sentenced two years ago.

The Town Talk was unable to reach her Friday for comment. In previous interviews, she said she wanted her husband to come home in time for her daughter to see him in the stands at a basketball game.

Last year, Gov. Mike Foster granted Allie Johnson immediate parole eligibility, and he received an unanimous recommendation for parole from the Louisiana Board of Pardons.

Johnson has served two years of his seven-year sentence for attempted manslaughter.

Johnson shot Donald Wayne Spears, who was paroled in 2001 after serving time for molesting Johnson's daughter.

In 1998, the couple's then 12-year-old daughter was taken into some woods in Beauregard Parish with two other girls. Spears molested the Johnson girl and another girl.

The day after reporting the crime, the Johnsons lured Spears to the woods where Allie Johnson shot him in the neck.

Lenora Johnson was given a suspended prison sentence and placed on supervised probation. Her husband was sentenced to jail.

Johnson had garnered support for his release from James Sandifer, president of the Louisiana Crime Victims Coalition and Common Sense Against Crime. However, Beauregard Parish officials, including the sheriff and district attorney, have opposed Johnson's parole.

http://thetowntalk.com/html/6C256CAC-EB02-4539-B55A-35FF6EC678F9.shtml

 

[CZ-75]

I guess citizens can't dispense justice for themselves, but rather hope that the legal system feels like it.

Sheriff and DA probably oppose his release because the perv the guy shot was a fishing buddy. Or he just made them look lazy and inept for not locking the guy up after umpteen violations.

I'm hoping for a commutation or pardon.

 

[jimpeel]

Johnson shot Donald Wayne Spears, who was paroled in 2001 after serving time for molesting Johnson's daughter.

I find it unpardonable that the guy who molested these girls has been back on the bricks for two years while the man who sought to protect them from this deviant rots in jail.

Your government in action.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

jimpeel, while I understand your sentiment, your chronology is wrong. The father was not protected the daughter from the molester, but instead handing out vigilante justice after the fact. Had he shot the guy while actually protecting his daughter from an attack, there would have been no questions asked.

While it seems unfair that the molestor is out before the father, the magnitude of the crimes is quite different.

Don't get me wrong here. I am not suggesting the molestor didn't deserve having his naughty parts split open and him staked to a fire ant bed for a few weeks as the first stage of punishment and then made Bubba's wife in a very small prison cell. All that would be too kind.

What the father did was illegal. I am sorry he was not a better shot and he probably is as well. I have no doubt he knew exactly what he was doing at the time and knew that there would be consequences for his actions. He did what he thought was right as a father after considering such aspects. He no doubt knew the cost of doing that business and went ahead anyway. All in all, he may still be way ahead of his expected curve/time table. He may have been trying to commit murder, expected to commit murder, and expected a much longer jail time for murder. How he got off with only attempted manslaughter and not full blow pre-meditated murder is beyond me.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

Jail time for protection after the crime? Since when do we consider it to be protection when it comes after the crime? After being burgled, robbed, raped, or murdered, we don't consider the cops who arrive later to be protection from that crime, so why would Johnson's attempted manslaughter be considered protection?

 

[tyme]

"I guess citizens can't dispense justice for themselves, but rather hope that the legal system feels like it."

What the father did was not "justice." Whether the justice system's response was "justice" is debatable.

 

[Mike Irwin]

"The day after reporting the crime, the Johnsons lured Spears to the woods where Allie Johnson shot him in the neck."

Eeeeeeeeee damn....

If that's correct, that sounds like extra-legal vigilantism...

No matter how much we might agree with the concept, there's still a problem here.

 

[OF]

Yes, it's vigilatism. No, we can't condone or allow it. That said, I don't blame the guy and if I was on that parole board he'd be home with his daughter.

- Gabe

 

[CZ-75]

What the father did was not "justice." Whether the justice system's response was "justice" is debatable.

Three years is justice? The man should've been shot three years earlier.

Tell me that you don't believe that the recidivism rate for sex offenders is low.

Johnson gave (attempted to give) the man what he deserved in the beginning.

That this creep could only serve 3 years and be released is the real crime here. Too bad judges and prosecutors and parole boards can't be held liable (civilly and criminally) for their decisions to release dangeous criminals to start where they left off.

 

[DeltaElite]

Sniper rifle

Long distance justice.

It's a travesty that he was ever sent to prison, all child molesters deserve death, IMHO.

 

[Sir Galahad]

The guy shot a filthy dog! What's the big deal? Let the guy out and let molestors fear the parents of their victims. They obviously don't fear the "justice" system. Excuse me, the "just us" system. That's the government saying "Just us deserve protection."

 

[TheLastBoyScout]

I'm with Delta and Galahad.... Some people just need shooting, and child molesters definitely fall under that category. Is it legal? no. Should the father be released? yes. The fact that the molester is already out is disgusting.:banghead: If that animal ever looks at a girl the wrong way again, I hope her father has better aim.

 

[wQuay]

So the creep served 3 years and is now back on the street? Revenge killings are pointless and wrong, but if the system let him go that easily offing him would be a public service

 

[Standing Wolf]

People who sexually harm children should be hanged.

 

[jmbg29]

If they insist on letting out things that prey on children, why do they even go through the motions of putting them behind bars? If you let a thief out, there is a tiny little chance that he won't steal again.
If you let out a thing that rapes children, it will rape again. Of that there can be no question. Any belief to the contrary is simply a fiction. THEY WILL DO IT AGAIN!

Is the idea to let the neighborhood kids have a couple of months vacation from being raped? Is that the plan?

This stuff boggles my mind. Where I grew up, we didn't have anything like child rapists. Then again, we had a lot of logging chain, and beaver swamps up the ying-yang.

 

[Tim Burke]

DNS writes:

the magnitude of the crimes is quite different.

On one side we have a guy that molests children, and on the other side we have a guy that usurps the state's perogative to administer justice. I think the molester is far worse, but I'm not surprised that the state doesn't think so. The state is very jealous of its authority.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

Child molesting is horrible - no doubt. Premeditated attempted murder (somehow reduced to attempted manslaughter which seemed to be a kind gesture) is a crime that has stiffer punishment. Usurping the legal system is a post hoc analysis and not relevant. The father tried to commit a murder, regardless of his motivation.

I don't understand the complaints here. If you do the crime, then expect to have to pay appropriately for it. Hell, even the governmor worked for this guy, getting him on the parole list. This guy is getting all sorts of legal breaks given the crime he committed.

Some of y'all are making him out to be some sort of victim and he is just a dirty as the guy who molested his child in terms of breaking the law. So somebody molested his kid. That guy had poor morals. This guy and his wife lure the suspect to the woods and attempt to kill him. That is hardly a moral act.

The struggle I have with the whole situation is that as a father, I can see how easy it would be to take revenge on the person(s) who harmed my child in some serious way like rape. I don't fault the father for the crime, but I also don't think we should give him a free ride for attempted murder. At the time of the crime, his daughter was no longer in danger. He was NOT protecting his child or the other injured child by trying to kill this man.

 

[CZ-75]

He was NOT protecting his child or the other injured child by trying to kill this man.

No, just the next child.

Instead, the father will spend more time in jail than the man who assaulted his daughter. I guess having your child raped doesn't make you a victim?

As to whether or not what the father did was attempted murder, I'd say that it was more like attempted justice.

I'd even, tongue and cheek, say that it was the state and its justice systems' fault. If they hadn't released the guy after three years, but given him 25 to life, he'd not have been shot. Perhaps he should sue for not getting more time to begin with.

I only wonder if he has made a full recovery, or is a quadrapelegic so that he can't even begin to put his hands on children.

 

[cratz2]

Protecting his child or not, based on the actions we know, Johnson is a better person than Spears. Regardless of time spent in jail. It speaks volumes about our lawmakers that someone that rapes and/or molests an innocent child gets a weaker sentence than someone that shoots a worthless pile... Of course, we probably know less than all the facts.

I'd do the same thing except he would be dead. Murder, not attempted manslaughter. By the way, how exactly does one commit 'attempted manslaughter'?

 

[.45Ruger]

What a horrible situation for anyone to be in. Your 12 year old daughter is molested and the perv only gets 2 years. I have to say If I were him I woul have felt outraged as well. Shooting him was not the answer though. Better take out a nice one page ad in the paper of the town he lives in. In this ad have his picture and a list of the crimes he was convicted of. Bet your life that his neigbors would then be able to watch their own children knowing a monster lives next store. It's probably not as satisfying but at least you may be able to prevent anothe molestati0on from happening.

 

[CZ-75]

I think taking out a one page ad detailing his sex crimes in La. is tantamount to killing him. Odds would be good that that person would be a better shot than Johnson.

 

[jmbg29]

I think taking out a one page ad detailing his sex crimes in La. is tantamount to killing him.

Nah! He would just move to Eastern Massachews and live in the protection of the Kennedy compound, or California so he could just blend right in.

 

[Delmar]

One would think a temporary insanity defense would have been appropriate for the rape victims father. Had I been on the jury, I certainly could have voted that way. I don't even want to think about where my mind would go if something that awful happened to any of my children.
It does seem the government is much more interested in protecting their almighty power than protecting a 12 year old girl.
Notice there is absolutely no mention of what the girl has had to endure, and we are supposed to feel sorry for the felon?
I understand you can't pin a medal on the shooter in public and they have to at least appear to be dispensing justice for all, but that is one lopsided deal.

 

[TallPine]

I'm surprised that the case against Johnson didn't get dismissed for "lack of evidence" - as in, the DA misplaced the file and can't seem to find it by the date of the trial.

The guy shoulda been a better shot ...

 

[Tim Burke]

DNS writes:

Usurping the legal system is a post hoc analysis and not relevant.

Huh?
Are you suggesting that any analysis done after the fact is irrelevant? Most analyses are done after the fact. Those that are done before the fact are sometimes described as guesses, predictions... or fiction. And, with the exception of Miss Cleo's clients, most people have a good idea of the value of these analyses.
Or are you suggesting that I've committed the logical fallacy known as post hoc ergo propter hoc?
You seem to think that the father is more deserving of punishment than the molester. That seems to be a minority viewpoint here. Most of the posters to date seem to think that the father, perhaps suspecting that the law would not appropriately punish the molester, took it upon himself to administer justice. If the father did harbor that suspicion, I would argue that it was borne out by the fact that the molester was released. If one believes that the molester's crime is greater, than the question which logically follows is, "Why is the father being punished more?" I have offered an answer to that question. You may think it is irrelevant, because you haven't asked that question, but most of the posts on this thread pertain directly or indirectly to that question.