A Nevada judge was attacked Wednesday by a defendant in a felony battery case who flung himself at the judge’s bench, landing on top of her with swinging arms sparking a bloody brawl involving court officials and attorneys.
The attack and the pandemonium that followed was all captured on video from the Las Vegas courtroom.
It shows the moment Clark County District Judge Mary Kay Holthus fell back against a wall and suffered some injuries as her assailant went on the attack. She was not hospitalized, courthouse officials made clear.
Deobra Delone Redden, 30, was wrestled to the floor behind the judge’s bench by several court and jail officers and courtroom staff members – including some who were seen throwing punches in the melee.
AP reports moments before the attack, Redden, who was in court to be sentenced over a previous attempted assault, urged Judge Kay to show lenience, telling her: “I’m not a rebellious person”.
But as she made it clear she intended to put him behind bars, and the court officer moved to handcuff him, Redden yelled expletives, charged forward and leapt over the judge’s bench.
He was subsequently arrested and jailed at the Clark County Detention Center, where records showed he faces multiple new felony charges including battery on a protected person — referring to the judge and court officers, the AP report notes.
In this image from video provided by the Clark County District Court, Judge Mary Kay Holthus is seen cradling her head after a defendant launched over her desk during his sentencing in a felony battery case, Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024 in Las Vegas. (Clark County District Court via AP)
“It happened so fast it was hard to know what to do,” said Richard Scow, the chief county district attorney who prosecuted Redden on a case that stemmed from an arrest last year on allegations that Redden attacked a person with a baseball bat.
In a statement obtained by AP, court spokesperson Mary Ann Price said officials were “reviewing all our protocols and will do whatever is necessary to protect the judiciary, the public and our employees.”
