Carson City man jailed, allegedly beats children with plastic jump rope

A Carson City man was arrested Tuesday for suspicion of felony child abuse after allegedly hitting two children in the legs with a plastic jump rope, a Carson City sheriff’s deputy said.

Johnnie Hansanleobeau Lawson, 28, was taken into custody at 3:16 p.m. at his home in the 1800 block of North Fall Street. He’s being held on $40,000 bail.

According to the arrest report, Lawson allegedly picked up his 4-year-old son by the throat and thew him at the boy’s 6-year-old step sister, then broke several of the children’s DVDs and toys and hit both of them on their legs with a plastic jump rope causing swelling and welts, which were observed and photographed by deputies.

The incident happened when the children’s mother was at work. She has been in a dating relationship with the man for 7 years with one child, the 4-year-old, in common, the arrest report states.

When the mother returned from work, she observed the red welts on the legs of the children after the kids ran to her and began hugging onto her, the arrest report states. It was learned Lawson was angry at the children because they went outside of the apartment to play while he was playing video games, the arrest report states.

When the children’s mother asked Lawson what happened, he told her the children went outside without permission and he disciplined them. The suspect and the mother began to argue and the suspect left the apartment. It was also noted in the report he had alcohol on his breath when he left. He later returned and was arrested.

In other bookings:
— A 56-year-old Tennessee man, James Randy Palmer, was arrested Tuesday, 12:27 a.m. in the area of North Carson and Washington streets for two felony drug charges possession of methamphetamine and possession with intent to sell; and six misdemeanors: Ex-felon failing to register, two counts possession of drug paraphernalia, driving without a valid license, no proof of insurance and driving with an obstructed plate.

According to the arrest report a deputy observed a vehicle in the area of Carson and Telegraph streets with an obstructed rear license plate. The officer initiated a traffic stop on the vehicle. The man presented the officer with a Tennessee ID card.

He was checked for warrants that came back with a non-extraditable warrant with cautions advising Palmer is a known user of controlled substances and may be armed and dangerous. Dispatch advised he was also an ex-felon and was required to register as an ex-felon. He told deputies he had been living in Carson City for four months. He also had an expired driver’s license and did not have a copy of insurance in the vehicle, the arrest report states.

He was mirandized and told officers he was not in any possession of controlled substances. During an inventory of the vehicle, officers located two methamphetamine pipes. At jail he informed deputies he had meth in his wallet that was in his rear left pocket. The meth was in two separate plastic bags and weighed two grams. Bail: $10,522.

— A 28-year-old Carson City man was arrested Wednesday, 12:30 a.m. in the area of William and Carson streets for misdemeanor suspicion of misuse of calling 911. According to the arrest report, the man made multiple phone calls to 911 several times that evening and during the week and the week prior. Among the claims the man made, he told dispatch he lost his drum set, needed help finding a flag and that he was being chased. During booking a deputy recovered a cell phone that had pre-dialed “emergency call” with a four minute timer displayed on the face of the telephone. Bail: $2,500.

— A 59-year-old Carson City man was booked Tuesday, 7:02 p.m. into Carson City jail for a misdemeanor failure to appear warrant issued Jan. 24, 2017 out of Carson City Justice Court. Bail: $215.

— A 22-year-old Carson City man was arrested Wednesday, 3 a.m. in the area of North Carson and Bath streets for a misdemeanor warrant issued May 13, 2017 out of Carson City Justice Court. Bail: $370.

All information for the crime log (unless otherwise noted) comes from the arrest reports supplied by the Carson City Sheriff's Office, and is considered by law to be public information. All subjects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The policy of Carson Now is to name anyone who is arrested for a felony offense.