Johnson sentenced as career criminal; maximum 18-year sentence for fleeing, crash

Yahoo

16-05-2025

Assistant District Attorney Philip Hatch told Criminal Court Judge Sean Fry that Donnel Laquan Johnson should serve the maximum sentence as a career offender based on 10 prior convictions over the span of 10 years.
Johnson was on probation because of an evading arrest conviction in January 2023 when he fled from a Tennessee trooper and after a lengthy pursuit that ended when he crashed into a Cumberland County woman's vehicle. A total of four people were treated for injuries.
Johnson, 33, of Nashville, argued Hatch was wrong. He only had nine convictions.
Doesn't matter, the judge responded. Nine or 10, by state law, Johnson qualifies as a career offender. Adding in the fact Johnson was on supervised probation for four years after pleading guilty to evading arrest in January 2023 in Davidson County, elevated sentencing to the maximum allowed.
It took a Cumberland County jury 14 minutes to find Johnson guilty of felony reckless endangerment and felony evading arrest. The sentencing hearing Tuesday took just over an hour.
Calling the flight from police and resulting crash 'incredibly dangerous,' and that Johnson is 'still minimizing it and not taking any responsibility for your actions,' Fry handed down the 18-year maximum sentence — 12 years for reckless endangerment and six for evading arrest to be served consecutive — at a rate of 60%.
'I don't think you think you did anything wrong,' Fry noted. 'I don't think you are going to stop (committing offenses).'
Johnson was convicted April 7 after a one-day trial during which Tennessee Highway Patrol Trooper Ethan Cunningham testified he was observing traffic near the 307 mile marker on I-40 around 7:30 a.m. Sept. 24, 2024. He spotted a Nissan Altima traveling 94 mph and followed the motorist a short distance before attempting a traffic stop.
At a speed of 115 mph, the motorist fled to the Plateau Rd. exit and drove recklessly on the curvy county road, crossing left of center on double yellow lines, forcing vehicles from the roadway or to a stop and almost striking a tree.
The pursuit continued to Hwy. 127 N. and testimony showed Johnson traveled toward Crossville, continuing his reckless driving as he traveled through the construction zone and approached the Circle K convenience store.
The chase ended when Johnson passed a line of traffic and struck a Chevrolet pickup truck driven by Brenda Potter, who had stopped to turn into the convenience store parking lot. She was injured and testified the crash altered her life. She was flown from the scene to a regional trauma center, racking up thousands in medical bills, lost her only vehicle in the crash and ended up losing her job because she had no transportation.
During questioning by THP Investigator Al Seitner, Johnson admitted he was driving and said he was going to continuing fleeing 'until he ran out of gas' or crashed. A video of that interrogation was played for the jury.
Tennessee Department of Corrections/Board of Pardon and Parole Officer Andrew Essex was the only witness to testify in Tuesday's hearing. He prepared the presentencing report which included 10 felony convictions in Cumberland (recent trial), Davidson, Franklin, Madison and Wilson counties in Tennessee and in McCracken County, KY.
One of the charges — a July 2016 conviction for aggravated assault — was a reduced charge from the original offense of criminal exposure to HIV.
Johnson did not provide a statement of his side of the story to the probation officer. As a result of the Strong-R assessment required as part of the presentencing report, Essex testified the results were that Johnson was a 'hyper violent' offender.
In a quasi elocution statement to the court, Johnson told the judge, 'Whatever the outcome is, I'm cool with it. Evading is not that serious as the DA is trying to give me.'
After the hearing, defense attorney Joe Wyatt asked to be allowed to withdraw from representing Johnson, citing a complaint Johnson had filed.
Fry granted the motion and appointed the Public Defender's Office to represent Johnson if an appeal is filed.