"The bullet struck Johnson in the neck on the afternoon of Oct. 8, 2020, but it didn't kill him right away. He'd survive for another three years, paralyzed from the neck down, until succumbing from his injuries in 2023. The suspected shooter, Charles Chucky Whitlatch, was well known to police, it turned out. A Contra Costa Sheriff's deputy who patrolled the area knew him by his blue and white houseboat, adorned with skull decals."
"Now Whitlatch, 63, has resolved his case, pleading no contest to voluntary manslaughter of Johnson, court records show. On Nov. 12, he is scheduled to be sentenced to 21 years in state prison, prosecutors said. Authorities say that Johnson identified Whitlatch from his hospital bed in Santa Clara County, where he spent the rest of his life after the shooting. His interview was painstaking; he had limited ability to talk and had to mouth words or shake his head yes or no."
"But Johnson told police that as he was showing off his boat, Whitlatch became angry about someone having moved or touched something on the vessel. Johnson said he hardly had time to process the words before Chucky shot him, according to court records. Johnson remained awake after being shot, but told emergency responders that he couldn't feel anything below his neck, authorities said."
Gary Johnson Jr. was shot on Oct. 8, 2020, while showing his boat to a prospective buyer at D'Anna Bethel Island Resort Marina. The bullet struck his neck and left him paralyzed from the neck down; he survived until dying from his injuries on July 5, 2023. The suspected shooter, Charles Chucky Whitlatch, was known to local police and allegedly fled to Idaho after the shooting, where he was arrested on attempted murder charges. Johnson identified Whitlatch from his hospital bed despite limited ability to speak. Whitlatch pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter and faces a scheduled 21-year state prison sentence on Nov. 12.
Read at www.mercurynews.com
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