Category: Court News

KINGMAN – A man who murdered a retired Bullhead City couple who once employed him at their former business in California won’t likely enjoy freedom again. Aaron Bryant, 31, pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree murder during a Feb. 7 hearing before Mohave County Superior Court Judge Derek Carlisle. Defense attorney Paul Amann noted that Bryant is perhaps the most reasonable and compliant defendant he’s ever represented under such trying circumstance. Authorities have indicated that Bryant accepted their offer to come live with them in Bullhead City after Tommy Hinton, 62, and his wife Annette, 59, relocated following retirement…

KINGMAN – A Kingman man was apologetic when sentenced to prison for attempting to bring drugs from Phoenix back to northwest Arizona for distribution. David Murphy, 64, was the driver of the vehicle from which authorities seized two pounds of methamphetamine in south Mohave County. Authorities were tracking the Murphy vehicle by cellphone before the Oct. 26, 2023 traffic stop in the 1800 block of U.S. 93 in the vicinity of Wikieup. After previously pleading guilty to transportation of dangerous drugs for sale, Murphy made a Jan. 30 appearance for sentencing before Judge Doug Camacho. “I apologize to the court…

BULLHEAD CITY – A Bullhead City man faces at least a decade behind bars after pleading guilty to the brutal beating death of his mother. A first-degree murder charge would be reduced to a second-degree murder conviction under terms of the deal entered Thursday, Feb. 8 before Judge Billy Sipe. Consistent with police accounts, Deputy Mohave County Attorney Amanda Claerhout said that Joseph Houston, 28, used a rock to smash a sliding glass door to gain access to his mother’s home in the 1300 block of Lincoln Lane on April 21, 2023. Claerhout said Houston’s brother left the home while the…

BULLHEAD CITY – A Bullhead City man faces at least a decade behind bars after pleading guilty to the brutal beating death of his mother. A first-degree murder charge would be reduced to a second-degree murder conviction under terms of the deal entered Thursday, Feb. 8 before Judge Billy Sipe. Consistent with police accounts, Deputy Mohave County Attorney Amanda Claerhout said that Joseph Houston, 28, used a rock to smash a sliding glass door to gain access to his mother’s home in the 1300 block of Lincoln Lane on April 21, 2023. Claerhout said Houston’s brother left the home while the…

KINGMAN – Brady Shuffler has accepted responsibility, and the reality of serving years behind bars, for causing the deaths and injuries of his friends and fellow student athletes at Lee Williams High School. Shuffler, 16, pleaded guilty to two counts each of manslaughter and aggravated assault during a Friday, Feb. 9 hearing before Mohave County Superior Court Judge Derek Carlisle, and a packed gallery. Other criminal charges are dismissed in the deal providing Judge Carlisle significant discretion in meting out punishment. Carlisle can impose as little as three and as many as 18 years in prison, followed by probation for…