Tarrant County approves additional $60,000 for defense attorneys in jail death

Two outside legal counsels were contracted by Tarrant County Commissioners for two sheriff’s employees who were involved in the death of jail inmate Anthony Johnson Jr.

The Tarrant County medical examiner’s office determined Johnson’s death was a homicide by asphyxiation.

Johnson died on April 21, 2024 while in custody of the Tarrant County jail after being arrested within 48 hours prior, while enduring what his family says was a schizophrenic episode.

A previous Star-Telegram article reported Johnson resisted jailers during a cell check and was pepper-sprayed before being handcuffed and held on the floor improperly with a detention officer’s knee on his back, according to partial video of the altercation released by the Sheriff’s Office.

Sheriff’s employees Royce Moody and Kimberly Nobles are named defendants in a lawsuit filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas by Johnson’s family. Two other sheriff’s employees have been indicted on murder charges.

Tarrant County Commissioners approved two contracts for legal counsel not to exceed $30,000 in order to continue using attorneys Darrell Noga and Thomas Brandt in the defense of Moody and Nobles. Both attorneys now work for different law firms when they were first procured for the case but have since moved to other firms.

Noga has been paid $21,161.16 and Brandt has been paid $28,919.75 so far for their representation of the two sheriff’s employees. Both now have a renewed contract not to exceed $30,000 as of the 3-2 approval along party lines given by county commissioners Tuesday.

The county is statutorily obligated to pay for the representation of Moody and Nobles, but many of the residents who spoke at the commissioners court meeting asked the county to settle the case so the Johnson family may find peace.

“At some point, an elected official has to take a stand instead of hiding behind legal obligations and pretending their hands are tied,” Jacqueline Johnson, the victim’s mother, said to the commissioners on Tuesday. “This trial is being pushed closer to election season, and everyone can see the timing. There is a video that shows exactly what happened. There is no reason this should take years, unless the goal is delay, protection and political convenience.”