QuickTake:

Multiple people called police to report a man later identified as Tyler James Johnson holding a shotgun in the Whiteaker neighborhood. Johnson received treatment at a hospital, but has been held at Lane County Jail since about a week after he was shot. A review found the police shooting justified.

A man shot by Eugene police Nov. 12 after brandishing a shotgun in the Whiteaker neighborhood was sentenced to 18 months in prison Thursday, April 16.

Tyler James Johnson, 40, sustained non-life threatening injuries after police responded to reports of a man walking in traffic with a shotgun.

Johnson pleaded guilty Thursday to charges of unlawful use of a weapon and menacing.

A police affidavit filed in the case described multiple callers reporting a man with a shotgun. Dispatch records show calls made at about 12:30 p.m. 

According to the affidavit, one person walking on a path reported being approached by a man from the street who he said pointed the shotgun at him multiple times, yelling “boom.” 

There is no mention in the affidavit of Johnson ever firing the weapon.

After the shooting, Johnson was treated at a local hospital. He was booked Nov. 19 into the Lane County Jail, where he has remained in custody after being denied bond, according to jail and court records.

Lane County Circuit Court Judge Curtis Conover handed down a sentence that provides credit to Johnson for time served. 

In prison, Johnson is eligible for an alternative incarceration program, according to the sentence issued by Conover. 

Such programs, by state law, last a minimum of 270 days and are evidence-based. They may involve “cognitive restructuring in conformance with generally accepted rehabilitative standards” or drug or alcohol treatment.

Upon successful completion of such a program, Johnson would be eligible to begin serving 36 months of post-prison supervision.

Police shooting details revealed

Eugene police officer Will Stutesman shot Johnson on Madison Street, Lane County District Attorney Christopher Parosa said in a press release Friday, April 17.

A review of the shooting by Parosa in December found “no charges are factually or legally warranted for the conduct of the involved officer.” But at that time Parosa declined to release details of the shooting, citing Johnson’s ongoing criminal case.

Parosa’s statement Friday said Johnson “ignored officer commands” when police responded to multiple phone calls for help and was walking toward Oakshire Brewing’s Public House and Wandering Goat Coffee. Oakshire Brewing has an outdoor seating area for patrons.

Johnson “was shot after leveling the weapon in the direction of the shooting officer.”  Police, upon seizing Johnson’s short-barreled 12-gauge shotgun, found it to have a live round chambered in the weapon, Parosa said.

In 2015, Stutesman fatally shot Brian Babb, 49, after Babb pointed a rifle at two Eugene police officers, according to published reports. Alex Gardner, at the time Lane County’s district attorney, found the shooting legally justified.

In a civil trial after the shooting of Babb, a jury in 2020 found Stutesman and police did not use excessive force.