VISTA — A man accused of beating and killing his 80-year-old mother at his family’s Vista home will remain in custody without the option of bail, a Vista Superior Court judge ruled on Tuesday.
Tad Johnson, 55, was arrested and charged with the suspected first-degree murder of his mother, Linda Johnson, on Oct. 14. He pleaded not guilty to the charge at his arraignment on Friday.
On the day of the alleged attack, police arrived at the residence along Riviera Drive after receiving a report of a battery. They discovered Linda Johnson with traumatic injuries, and she died the next day at the hospital.
At a bail hearing on Tuesday at the Vista Courthouse, Deputy District Attorney Ted Minahan said the evidence indicated that Johnson had used his hands to strike his mother in the face and head repeatedly.
Minahan described Johnson’s swollen right hand, extensive injuries to Linda Johnson’s face, and the presence of blood a few feet from where she lay when police arrived.
“This wasn’t some bar fight,” Minahan said. “The victim is an 80-year-old woman who was repeatedly struck and died due to those blows.”
Criminal defense attorney Mark Geragos, who represents Johnson, urged the court to set bail at $100,000 and said his sister and brother-in-law were prepared to take him in if he were to be released on bail.
Geragos claimed there is not enough evidence at this time of either murder or malice by Johnson, and that the only thing possessed by the District Attorney’s Office was an out-of-court statement made by Johnson to officers that “he was struck first and he struck back.”
Judge Valerie Summers declined the request for bail, stating that photos of the victim showed extensive injuries. While Johnson has no criminal record, she said he could still pose a danger to the community, considering the vulnerability of the victim.
“The level of violence against a vulnerable victim is something I consider,” Summers said.
Lt. Juan Marquez said last week that they were still investigating who owns the home where the attack took place, but said it is believed to be a family member’s. The Medical Examiner’s Office will announce the cause and manner of death.
Johnson will be back in court for a readiness hearing on Oct. 27.
