Social Worker Attacked Inside State Office as Suspect Livestreamed It

Mesa, AZ (WorkersCompensation.com) – Officials say an attack on an Arizona Department of Child Safety employee was livestreamed on Facebook by the suspect this week.

According to police in Mesa, Ariz., De’Andre Terrell Johnson arrived for a meeting with his case worker to discuss a case involving his children. Johnson livestreamed the meeting as he and the DCS employee met in the lobby of the office in Mesa. The meeting started around 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 5.

Off-camera, the employee is heard asking Johnson a series of questions about his background, his education level, his mental state and the children. The discussion then moved to serious allegations made against Johnson that required meeting. On multiple occasions during the meeting, Johnson asks the employee to introduce themselves, which the employee declines to do.

At 5 p.m., as the meeting wraps up, Johns asks the employee if he will “dap him up.” The employee agrees and video shows that as the employee leans in, Johnson grabs him and puts him in a chokehold and begins to choke him. Johnson repeatedly says, “You’re a dead man,” and repositions the angle of the camera to ensure the attack is within the frame.

Two minutes into the attack, the employee appears to stop moving. It’s then that witnesses in the background begin to yell at Johnson to stop and start calling the police. About 30 seconds later, Johnson releases his grip and the employee falls face first into the floor. As witnesses tell Johnson he’s made his point while standing over the still employee on the ground, Johnson says, “No, I didn’t,” and begins to attack the victim again.

Records indicate that multiple witnesses called the police, but by the time police responded, Johnson had already left.

First responders said the employee was lying on the floor with injuries to his face and in “an altered state of consciousness” then they arrived. The employee was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.

After a search, and a chase, police were able to find and arrest Johnson within a few hours of the attack. He was charged with attempted first-degree murder, two counts of aggravated assault and unlawful flight.

Doctor said the employee’s injuries were “absolutely serious” and that he almost died. When interviewed by the police, the employee said Johnson had threatened his life the previous week during a conversation about Johnson’ daughter. The employee said at that time he was able to calm Johnson down and end the confrontation. The employee also said he felt Johnson wanted to kill him during the attack and that his “life was over.”

A DCS spokesperson said in a statement that the employee had been released from the hospital and is recovering.

"Yesterday one of our specialists was assaulted in an unprovoked and horrific manner by a parent at our Tempe/Gilbert field office,” the statement said. “This disturbing event occurred in the public lobby of the building, and although no weapon was used, the attack was severe enough that our specialist had to be taken by ambulance for medical treatment... We are relieved that the specialist has been discharged from the hospital and is now at home recovering with family.”

The agency said its staff has to do difficult work under challenging circumstances and that it is committed to keeping its staff safe so that they can conduct their work. The agency also said it is investigating the incident to learn how it can prevent similar attacks in the future.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, health and social service workers are nearly five times as likely to suffer a serious workplace violence injury than workers in other lines of work. Between 2011 and 2013 there were 23,000 workplace assaults and nearly 75 percent of those were in the healthcare and social service settings.

Those numbers have only increased. Between 2021 and 2022, there were 57,610 workplace assaults that resulted in injuries, of which 525 were fatalities. In 2021-2022, the rate of injuries due to workplace violence was 14 per 10,000 full-time employees in the healthcare and social services sector – more than triple the rate for all industries.

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