He says Richmond Public Schools failed him after he was injured in the Graduation Day shooting
By Jon Burkett
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RICHMOND, Virginia (WTVR) — There are few greater examples of sacrifice than putting yourself in harm’s way to protect a friend.
In this case, Desmond Johnson’s friend was his seven-year-old son.
The setting was a place where this loving father never imagined he’d encounter violence and bloodshed.
Desmond Johnson Jr. is a father rehabbing.”Everybody was like therapy gonna do this and therapy gonna do that, I like working out.”
A local trucking company owner – trying to get life moving in the right direction again, one step at a time.
“All I know man is I saw the young man coming my way with the gun,” Johnson said.
The 31-year-old’s world was upended on June 6, in front of the Altria Theater in Downtown Richmond when gunfire erupted shortly after the Huguenot High School’s graduation ceremony.
Immediately, Johnson blanketed his 7-year-old son. “As I was laying on the ground protecting him one shot hit my neck and one hit my face.”
Johnson suffered a spinal cord injury and was rushed to VCU Medical Center in a life-threatening status.
Four others suffered non-life-threatening gunshot wounds, while Huguenot graduate Shawn Jackson and his stepfather Renzo Smith were both pronounced dead at the scene.
“It’s senseless man how kids go out there and just fire off rounds into a crowd. My grandma was out there man and she’s 71 and she got trampled.”
Johnson says he couldn’t tell which direction the bullets were coming from. Police say they recovered four guns from the scene – one belonging to a man who didn’t fire his weapon – the other belonging to accused killer Amari Pollard.
Investigators still have not said where the other two came from.
A third-party investigation revealed that Jackson was allowed to attend the ceremony without proper vetting or consideration of the safety and security concerns associated with his attendance.
The report showed there was minimal security inside and outside the theater, which became an issue when the shooting began and people began to run for their lives, a concern echoed by Johnson.
“When I turned around there was a lot of commotion like they were trying to hold the guy back from coming my way,” Johnson said.
“I don’t know if the Jackson guy was looking that way or not but the guy with the red hoodie was definitely heading my way.”
In seconds, an event that was supposed to be a celebration of the scholastic achievement of a family member turned tragic.
Johnson, a product of Petersburg Schools, is now saying that Richmond Public Schools failed him and his family.
“I went to Petersburg, if you got expelled from school you don’t go to graduation, prom, senior trip,” Johnson said. “You didn’t do nothing – so why was this kid able to come to graduation – I don’t understand.”
Quite a few people were anxious to see third-party investigators’ findings in the shooting report, including Johnson’s attorney, Tameka Robinson at the Cravens and Noll law firm.
“At this point, we’re going through the order and all the documentation that has been released but I will tell you this Mr. Johnson was seriously injured and his young son was extremely traumatized by what they both went through on that day. They deserve to know exactly how all of this happened and we are gonna fight to make sure that Desmond and his son are compensated for what they have been through.”
Johnson says the financial strain the mass shooting put on his family is immeasurable.
However, he says his family has been his rock – all working together to make sure that he gets back on his feet.
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