SHREVEPORT, La. – A Shreveport man indicted in February 2024 for second-degree murder was not arrested until more than a year later — after he was accused of nearly beating his girlfriend to death.
Damien Monte Johnson, 33, is now in jail, charged in the July 2022 shooting death of Eli McKinney, 21, outside a Greenwood Road motel. Despite a warrant issued in early 2024, Johnson remained free for over a year, during which time he allegedly attacked his girlfriend with a rubber mallet and struck her with a vase. At the time of the attack, her injuries were described as life threatening.
The arrest has raised questions about communication between law enforcement and prosecutors — and whether systemic failures allowed a murder suspect to remain at large.
McKinney’s parents say their son was trying to sell watches to make money when he was shot. Police quickly identified Johnson, a convicted felon with a long history of gun-related offenses, as the suspect…