A man who carjacked a vehicle in Orland Park and later fired shots at an Oak Forest police officer who was pursuing him has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.
David Johnson carjacked a vehicle in Orland Park Feb. 12, 2021, then led police on a high-speed chase into Chicago where he crashed into another car in the Morgan Park community, according to the office.
After the crash, Johnson ran and fired shots at an Oak Forest officer chasing him, according to the office. Johnson was taken into custody a short time later by Chicago police.
At the time of the carjacking, Johnson was on court-supervised release following his imprisonment for a prior federal firearm conviction, according to the U.S. attorney.
Johnson, 27, of Chicago, pleaded guilty in early May this year to federal carjacking and firearm charges. U.S. District Judge Thomas M. Durkin imposed the sentence Thursday during a hearing in federal court in Chicago.
Prosecutors had asked for a 20-year sentence for Johnson while his lawyers sought a term of no more than 11 years.
Prosecutors said Johnson “led officers on a terrifying high-speed chase on Interstate 57 during the evening commute,” driving a Mercedes Benz SUV he had taken from a man in Orland Park, with the chase reaching speeds up to 120 mph.
Johnson, during the pursuit, was driving in excess of 85 mph on single-lane residential side streets where the posted speed limit was 25 mph, prosecutors said.
While on I-57, Johnson weaved in and out of traffic, on and off the shoulder as other drivers tried to dodge the Mercedes and multiple vehicles nearly crashed, prosecutors said.
Johnson’s actions, they said, “show a complete disregard for human life.”
According to prosecutors, Johnson and at least one other person drove to Orland Park in a stolen vehicle. The carjacking victim had just arrived home from work, and was sitting in the Mercedes parked in the driveway outside his home in the 15500 block of Hollyhock Court, according to prosecutors.
Johnson approached the vehicle about 5:25 p.m., opened the driver’s door and “pressed the muzzle of a handgun to the side of his face,” according to prosecutors.
“Don’t you (expletive) move. … Give me the key,” the victim recalled the carjacker saying to him, according to the federal criminal complaint against Johnson.
The carjacking victim had a gun in his vehicle but decided not to try to use it for fear of being shot, according to prosecutors.
Johnson took off in the Mercedes and after police broadcast the car’s description over the radio, leading an Oak Forest police officer to spot the vehicle and begin following it south on Central Avenue from 151st Street at a high rate of speed, the criminal complaint stated.
The officers made several attempts to pull over the Mercedes, but instead it sped onto northbound I-57 with officers in pursuit. After exiting at 119th Street, the stolen car struck several vehicles while traveling north on Hamlet Avenue, eventually crashing into the back of a parked car at 112th Street, the complaint stated.
Johnson then ran. During the chase, an Oak Forest police officer saw Johnson turn his body and point a black handgun at him, then heard “the sound of a gunshot and saw the muzzle flash of a handgun being fired,” according to the complaint. No officers were struck by the gunfire, but a .45 caliber shell casing was later found at the scene, the charges alleged.
The officers lost sight of Johnson as he fled through residential yards, according to the complaint. About 20 minutes later, a Chicago police officer saw a man matching Johnson’s description walking down the street talking on a cellphone, then getting into a black Acura.
Police stopped the Acura at 109th Place and Loomis Street and ordered Johnson out of the vehicle.
The victim’s wallet was found on the ground where Johnson had run after the crash, the complaint stated. Police also found a black 9 mm pistol on the floorboard of the stolen Mercedes loaded with a high capacity magazine loaded with 23 rounds of ammunition.
Records show Johnson pleaded guilty in 2019 to being a felon in possession of a firearm and was sentenced to 14 months in prison. He was released in April 2020 and was still on supervised release at the time of the Orland Park carjacking, records show.
