Evansville man accused of shooting a rifle at two adults and one child

Dec 30, 2023

EVANSVILLE — A man wielding a semi-automatic rifle allegedly shot at an Evansville couple and their child Monday morning from the second story of a North First Avenue apartment building.

Evansville police arrested the man, 29-year-old Aaron Lee Johnson, early Monday morning. At his residence, detectives reportedly recovered an assault rifle with an attached scope and a bag designed to capture shell casings, along with nearly a pound of psilocybin mushrooms and mushroom-growing equipment.

None of the victims were reported to have suffered injuries.

Court records show that Johnson has a history of pointing firearms at people. In two such cases from 2017 and 2019, Johnson struck plea agreements with prosecutors and received lenient sentences that saw him avoid serving time in prison.

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Johnson is currently being held at the Vanderburgh County jail on four preliminary charges: attempted murder, criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon, possession of a firearm by a domestic batterer, and dealing Schedule 1 narcotics.

According to Johnson's arrest affidavit, a woman reported that she had been shot at by "a man with a rifle in his hands" as she and two others − including a child − attempted to drive to a North First Avenue apartment building. Evansville police officers received the report just after 12:10 a.m. Monday.

"She fled the area and ended up meeting with officers near the intersection of North Fourth Avenue and West Indiana Street," EPD Detective Steven Toney wrote in the affidavit.

The woman stated she and her husband had traveled to a small apartment building in the 100 block of North First Avenue when they noticed a man standing on the second-story balcony holding what appeared to be a rifle.

"They both described the rifle as a 'dark-colored assault rifle with a scope," Toney wrote. "As they drove in the parking lot, [the victims] saw the male begin to aim the rifle directly at them."

The woman told detectives that as she attempted to flee the building's parking lot, she heard "a loud boom" and realized the man had shot at her car. She reported hearing what sounded like a bullet impacting the ground directly beside her door.

According to Toney, the woman's young child was belted in his car seat throughout the incident.

After speaking with the victims, officers surrounded the two-story, four-unit apartment building and made contact with Johnson, who allegedly issued threats to shoot both himself and the officers.

"At one point, Mr. Johnson dropped a black rifle with a scope on it out the front window of his apartment," Toney wrote.

Officers then took Johnson into custody and detectives secured a warrant to search Johnson's apartment. They allegedly recovered an assault rifle with a telescopic gun sight from an awning below Johnson's balcony. Detectives also said the rifle had a bag attached to its ejection port.

"The rifle was found to have a 'brass catcher' bag attached to it," Toney wrote. "This type of bag is commonly attached to a rifle and used for the purpose of catching shell casings when the rifle is fired instead of letting them fall to the ground."

The bag had one spent shell casing in it, according to Toney.

Narcotics detectives also responded to the scene and searched Johnson's apartment. Inside, they reported recovering 0.8 pounds of psilocybin mushrooms and multiple pounds of what appeared to be mushroom-growing equipment.

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"Potting soil and mushrooms were scattered throughout the apartment," Johnson's arrest affidavit states.

In May 2017, Vanderburgh County Sheriff's deputies took a report from two people who said Johnson pointed a handgun at them during an argument, according to a probable cause affidavit filed in Vanderburgh County Circuit Court.

Johnson was alleged to have told the victims, "I'll put you down," after he took aim with a Glock 22 pistol. In Johnson's arrest affidavit, detectives noted that the gun was loaded and contained a .40-caliber round in the chamber.

At the time, Indiana required handgun owners to obtain a license to carry. Johnson had no such license and was charged with three offenses:

But Johnson struck a deal with prosecutors that saw both felony charges dismissed. On May 25, 2018, Vanderburgh County Circuit Court Judge David Kiely sentenced Johnson to serve just 10 days in jail for carrying a handgun without a license, according to a sentencing order.

Johnson was given credit for time he served at the Vanderburgh County jail after his initial arrest and did not face additional punishment.

In September 2019, Johnson aimed a pistol at multiple people during an altercation that took place in the 900 block of Parrett Street, according to an affidavit of probable cause filed by the EPD.

Johnson and a second man reportedly attacked at least three people, one of whom was legally armed with a handgun. Johnson ultimately got a hold of the victim's pistol and pointed it directly at the victim's face.

"[A witness] said the offender pulled the trigger but the gun did not fire," an EPD detective wrote in Johnson's arrest affidavit. "[The witness] told me he then saw the offender remove the magazine from the firearm and throw the weapon."

The victims later identified Johnson as the man who attempted to shoot them, the affidavit states.

Johnson faced 5 charges for his role in the incident: robbery resulting in s bodily injury, a Level 3 felony, and four counts of intimidation where the defendant draws or uses a deadly weapon, a Level 5 felony.

Johnson pleaded guilty to the four intimidation offenses in May 2020, according to court records. In exchange, prosecutors dismissed the robbery charge.

One month later, Vanderburgh County Circuit Court Judge Kellie Fink sentenced Johnson to serve four years in prison, but the prison time was suspended to probation.

The Courier & Press reached out to the Vanderburgh County Prosecutor's Office Monday afternoon seeking information about when prosecutors would file formal charges in relation to Johnson's latest arrest.

Houston Harwood can be contacted at [email protected]