Opinion ID: 2543261
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Death-eligibility phase

Text: Johnson's death-eligibility phase lasted four days. Both parties made opening statements to the jury. State's case in aggravation The State presented evidence of a single aggravating circumstance it pursued for each of the four murdersthat Johnson had been convicted of more than one murder in the immediate proceeding pursuant to NRS 200.033(12). [8] Certified copies of the jury verdict forms and transcripts from the original guilt phase were admitted into evidence to establish the quadruple murder by Johnson. The State also presented the testimony of four witnesses. Justin Perkins, a friend of the victims, testified how he discovered their lifeless bodies. Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) Detective Thomas Thowsen, who had investigated the four murders since they were first reported in August 1998, gave the bulk of the testimony. He recounted for the jury the criminal investigation and summarized evidence presented through various State witnesses during the guilt phase. He also read portions of the original trial testimony of these witnesses. LVMPD Forensic Crime Lab Manager Berch Henry testified about the DNA analysis linking Johnson to the murders, and Clark County Forensic Pathologist, Medical Examiner Dr. Gary Telgenhoff, summarized the autopsy findings regarding each victim. Each of the victims, according to Dr. Telgenhoff, died from a single gunshot wound to the back of the head at very close range about an inch or so away from skin. The wrists and ankles of each victim were bound with duct tape, and none had any defensive wounds. Unlike the other victims, Talamantez also had a laceration and abrasion on his nose due to blunt force consistent with being pistol whipped. Defense's case in mitigation Johnson called only members of his family to testify during this phase. They testified that Johnson's mother, who by her own admission was a little slow, abused alcohol and illegal drugs, including crack cocaine and PCP, when Johnson was a child. She even did so in his presence. She would sometimes leave Johnson and his sisters alone or lock them in a closet. Johnson's father abused his mother in front of Johnson and his sisters, once knocking her teeth out and attempting to throw her out of a hotel window. Johnson was also beaten. At one point, Johnson, his two sisters, and several of his cousins were forced to live in a one-room shed for about a month. The shed had no running water, no carpet, and no furniture. The children had to go to the bathroom in a bucket and sleep on the floor with no covers. While living in the shed, the children sometimes did not comb their hair or eat. Because they had no shower, the children often had to go to school with body odor. They were also hungry at times. The police were eventually contacted, and the children, including Johnson, were taken into foster care. Johnson and his sisters were thereafter sent to live with their grandmother, who was also caring for about ten other children. Johnson's grandfather, according to Johnson's sister Johnnisha Zamora, did the best he could, but she could not recall any time he ever spent with Johnson. Johnson's grandmother's house was in the Compton area of Los Angeles, where, as Johnson's sister Johnnisha explained, there was a lot of violence. Johnson and his two sisters were often chased and beaten up at school. His sister Eunisha White testified that Johnson was short and that they were picked on a lot by different people for no reason. Johnson's family testified about the positive aspects of his personality and their love for him. A video and several family pictures were admitted into evidence. Johnson's eight-year-old son Allen White, who was in the third grade, read to the jury a letter he wrote to his father which stated in part: I will love you in my heart, and you will love me in mine. Special verdict The State and the defense made closing arguments, and the State argued in rebuttal. The jury was also given instructions. The jury returned four special verdicts, finding the single aggravating circumstance pursued by the State. Seven mitigating circumstances were found: Johnson's youth at the time of the murders (he was 19 years old); he was taken as a child from his mother due to her neglect and placed in foster care; he had no positive or meaningful contact with either parent; he had no positive male role models; he grew up in violent neighborhoods; he witnessed many violent acts as a child; and while a teenager he attended schools where violence was common. The jury found the aggravating circumstance outweighed the mitigating circumstances and that Johnson was eligible for death.