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Left inset: Tyler Johns ((Henderson Police Department). Right inset: Brandon Dominguez-Chavarria (GoFundMe). Background: Body camera footage showing father Valente Ayala pleading with police after Tyler Johns allegedly shot and killed his son Brandon Dominguez-Chavarria during a road rage incident (Las Vegas Metropolitan Police).
A disturbing courtroom scene unfolded in Las Vegas when Tyler Johns, a 22-year-old facing murder charges, allegedly smirked at the grieving family of his alleged victim, an 11-year-old boy, during a road rage incident. This behavior, as recounted by prosecutors, took place during a court hearing in Clark County, leaving the family of young Brandon Dominguez-Chavarria visibly upset.
The unsettling moment was captured by a victim’s advocate present in the courtroom, who noted Johns’ inappropriate demeanor while seated among the boy’s relatives. The incident was reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, highlighting the emotional intensity surrounding the case.
Chief Deputy District Attorney Marc DiGiacomo addressed the behavior to the court marshal, prompting a swift response from District Judge Jacqueline Bluth. She was clear in her stance, emphasizing the decorum expected in her courtroom. “If it did happen, it will never happen again,” Bluth stated firmly, underscoring the importance of maintaining respect and composure.
Judge Bluth, maintaining her courtroom’s decorum, addressed Johns directly. She explained the importance of treating everyone with dignity and respect, noting how these principles ensure a calm atmosphere despite the high emotions typical of such cases. Meanwhile, Johns’ attorney strongly refuted the claims of his client’s alleged behavior.
“My courtroom is always very, very calm, even though emotions run very high in here,” she told Johns, whose lawyer vehemently denied the allegation of smiling and laughing. “And the reason why it runs so calmly is that I treat every single person that walks in those doors with dignity and respect,” Bluth said.
Defense attorney Ryan Helmick told Bluth, “It flat out did not happen. This is a very tragic case, and Tyler is taking it very seriously. The tensions are high, but we don’t appreciate the allegations being made,” according to the Review-Journal.
Johns was arrested last year for the Nov. 14 shooting, which unfolded in front of Brandon’s stepfather, who was in the courtroom on Tuesday.
Body camera footage shows the stepdad, Valente Ayala, crying out in agony after watching the boy die. Johns can allegedly be seen telling a police officer at the scene, “I f—ing killed him,” in reference to Brandon.
“I didn’t know he had a kid in the back,” Johns can be heard telling the officer, according to the body camera footage, which was released by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.
“You shot at him?” the officer asks. “Yeah!” Ayala screams. “My kid is dead!”
Johns allegedly admitted on camera that he was “road raging” before the shooting while driving on the 215 Beltway in Las Vegas. He allowed police to take him into custody without incident and can be seen on the body camera video calmly speaking about what allegedly happened and the aftermath.
“Is there a chance that the kid will be okay?” Johns asks an officer on scene, according to the footage. “There’s always a chance,” the officer replies. “If you’re a praying man, I would be praying right now.”
Johns was charged with first-degree murder, discharging a firearm from or within a structure or vehicle within a prohibited area, and discharging a firearm into an occupied structure. The Henderson Police Department said he got into a verbal altercation with Ayala, who was driving Brandon to school that morning, before Johns opened fire.
Henderson Police Chief Reggie Rader reported during a press conference that the two men were “jockeying for positions, trying to pass each other on the congested freeway.” One of them tried to pass the other using the shoulder, at which point the drivers “rolled down their windows and got into a verbal exchange,” according to Rader.
Johns allegedly pulled out a handgun and fired into the other driver’s vehicle, hitting Brandon while he was sitting in the back seat. Rader said Ayala “rammed” into Johns’ vehicle, “causing them both to come to a stop in the middle of the freeway.” The two men got out of their vehicles and got into a “heated exchange.” A Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department officer who was driving nearby was “hailed down” and stopped, with his body camera catching the aftermath on video. Brandon was taken to the hospital, where he died from his injuries.
“An 11-year-old was on his way to school and this senseless act took his life,” Rader said. “It is not worth it to engage in this type of behavior.”
Johns’ attorney argued Tuesday that he should not be charged with first-degree murder because he did not know Brandon was in the backseat. Deputy DA DiGiacomo said that under Nevada law, it is not required that an act of murder be committed knowingly.
“In the statute he’s charged under, you don’t have to,” DiGiacomo said, to which Bluth agreed.
“If you fire a weapon not knowing and not meaning to hit a child and the child dies from it, you are on the hook for first-degree murder,” the judge reportedly said.