Inset: James Alan Johnson (Chisago County Sheriff”s Office). Background: The highway leading into Wyoming, Minn. (Google Maps).
A Minnesota man is behind bars for trying to kill his wife with a hammer in a vicious attack frustrated by the timely delivery of a package, according to law enforcement in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.
James Alan Johnson, 72, stands accused of one count each of attempted murder in the first degree and assault with a dangerous weapon, according to the Chisago County Sheriff’s Office.
Two events occurred on May 11, authorities say. That’s the day the defendant allegedly planned — and tried — to kill his wife; but that was also the day the couple had an Amazon package arriving.
Police responded to the residence on Heims Lake Circle in Wyoming, a small town located some 30 miles northwest of Minneapolis, after an Amazon delivery driver called 911 to report the sound of frantic screaming as well as the sight of a woman with blood all over her hands and a man holding a hammer, according to court documents obtained by St. Paul-based ABC affiliate KSTP.
After dropping off the package, the delivery driver went inside the home, shouted at the septuagenarian to drop the hammer, and then called 911, according to law enforcement.
Johnson is said to have handed the hammer over to the driver, who set it down on a table as the defendant went down to the basement, according to a criminal complaint obtained by Minnesota-focused online news outlet Bring Me the News.
Police arrived to find the empty Amazon truck parked outside with the front door of the house wide open while the victim was found lying on her back on the living room floor in a pool of blood – yelling for help.
The victim was bleeding heavily from her head, arms, and hands, police said. Investigators also noted two large and bloody indentations on her head said to be consistent with multiple hammer blows.
“Upon arrival, officers located an adult female victim who had reportedly been struck in the head with a hammer,” the Wyoming Police Department said in a press release. “The victim was treated at the scene and transported to Regions Hospital in St. Paul for medical care.”
The woman, for her part, told police the defendant struck her twice with the hammer and that she managed to fend her husband off by kicking him in the groin, according to the charging document.
During an interview with law enforcement, Johnson allegedly said his business was facing financial ruin. The defendant said this looming collapse would likely force his wife to “potentially be living off of significantly reduced Social Security benefits and [he] did not want [her] to have to deal with that,” according to the complaint.
Johnson also allegedly admitted that he had been planning to kill his wife for several days, police said.
The defendant is currently detained in the Chisago County Jail on $1 million bond, records show. Johnson’s case has yet to be docketed in Minnesota’s online court system as of this writing.
