Chris Johnston III (Photo courtesy of Baxter County Sheriff’s Office)
During a session of Baxter County Circuit Court on March 17, a guilty plea was entered by a rural Mountain Home man charged with involvement in a fight with relatives involving a firearm.
Thirty-three-year-old Chris Mason Johnston III was sentenced to three years-probation. He was arrested after Baxter County sheriff’s deputies responded to a report of a domestic disturbance along Promise Land Road.
When the deputies arrived, they reported seeing Johnston standing beside a black vehicle. Johnston fled into the woods on seeing the deputies.
A woman identified as Johnston’s sister said her brother had gotten “extremely mad” during a meal and struck her in the face. The mother of the brother and sister involved in the fight attempted to come between them, and Johnston is reported to have shoved her down.
The sister told Johnston she was calling police, and he struck her again, according to the report. She told deputies she then attempted to run to her camper parked beside the residence.
Johnston is said to have armed himself with an AR-15-style rifle and threatened to shoot into the camper if his sister called the police.
Another female, identified as the sister’s partner, was in the camper when the sister rushed in and told her about the fighting that had just taken place in the residence.
The partner said Johnston spoke to her and said he did not care if the two women were in the camper or not, if police were called, he would shoot into it.
He is also alleged to have said he would shoot into a vehicle parked at the site if anyone tried to leave in the car.
An Arkansas Department of Corrections canine tracking team was brought to the scene to assist in locating Johnston. He was found lying on the ground a short distance from the residence and taken into custody without incident.
He took deputies to the area where he had discarded the rifle, and it was found about 30 feet from the edge of the woods into which he had initially fled.
The weapon was reported to have a round chambered and 29 additional rounds in an inserted magazine.
As the officers were dealing with the family fight and the hunt for Johnston and his weapon, one of them saw marijuana plants growing in flowerpots behind an old log barn.
The next day, a warrant was served and a search of the house and property was done.
Investigators reported finding seven mature marijuana plants.
In Johnston’s bedroom, three containers of processed marijuana were found along with drug paraphernalia.
Johnston’s charges include multiple counts of aggravated assault on a family or household member and third-degree domestic battery.
He also faces charges stemming from his possession of marijuana.
Members of Johnston’s family were in the courtroom and indicated they supported the sentence.
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