A man captured on video attacking a judge in a Las Vegas courtroom after jumping over her couch and desk has been sentenced to decades in prison.
Deobra Redden was sentenced Tuesday to 26 to 65 years in a Nevada prison for the attack on Clark County District Court Judge Mary Kay Holthus, CBS affiliate KLAS-TV in Las Vegas reported.
Redden, 31, pleaded guilty but mentally ill to attempted murder and other charges in September, ending his trial shortly after Holthus testified that she feared for her life when Redden jumped over her 4-foot couch and landed on her .
The attack occurred on Jan. 3 as Holthus was about to sentence Redden in a separate misdemeanor battery box.
The violent scene was captured on courtroom video, which showed the 62-year-old judge falling back from her chair into a wall as Redden threw himself over her bench and grabbed her by the hair, raising an American flag on them fell. Several other people, including Holthus’ courtroom marshal and her clerk, fought with Redden before throwing him to the ground, KLAS-TV reported.
Clark County District Court via AP
Holthus suffered some injuries but was not hospitalized, court officials said.
Redden’s attorney Carl Arnold has said his client was not taking prescribed medications to control his diagnosed schizophrenia at the time of the attack.
Arnold said in September, when Redden entered his plea, that it “reflects a delicate balance between accepting responsibility for an unfortunate incident and recognizing the impact of Mr. Redden’s then-untreated mental illness.”
The Associated Press sent an email to an Arnold spokesperson on Tuesday asking for comment on Redden’s sentence.
Redden said in court on Tuesday that he did not intend to kill Holthus, KLAS-TV reports.
“I’m not a bad person, I’m not a bad guy,” Redden said. “I am not making excuses for my actions, but I am saying that I am not a bad person and that I did not intend to kill Mary Kay Holthus. I know that I cared about her well-being.”
Holthus said nothing during the sentencing, KLAS-TV reports, but prosecutors read a statement from her.
“He made a conscious decision to kill me and did everything he could to succeed,” the statement said.
Redden will be eligible for parole sometime after 2050, KLAS-TV reported.
