KINGMAN – The Bullhead City man who puffed on a vaping device at the Mohave County District Library in Kingman and beat up the security guard who trespassed him from the property has been given a six-year prison term. Superior Court Judge Lee Jantzen imposed sentence for Paris Nealy, 37, on Monday, March 31.
A jury convicted Nealy of two aggravated assault charges when his two-day trial concluded at the Law and Justice Center in late February. Video surveillance figured prominently in the case.
One clip prosecutor Jacob Cote played for the jury showed Nealy clearly blowing smoke inside the library after inhaling from the device on April 22, 2024. Other video showed security guard Cory Gould directing him to exit the library after informing him smoking was prohibited there.
More dramatic video featured the violence that occurred when Gould confronted Nealy as he crossed by the library about 2.5 hours later. The diminutive defendant dropped Gould with a left handed roundhouse punch at the start of the encounter before he again floored the unarmed guard and rained blows upon him.
Library patrons came to Gould’s aid as the wobbly guard rose to his feet once more as Nealy walked away from the assault.
“I believe Mr. Nealy should be given the maximum,” said Gould, expressing certainty he’ll hurt somebody else if not incarcerated. “He is a danger to society.”
Judge Jantzen said it is obvious the encounter had a significant physical and emotional impact upon Gould. He said there would have been no trial or prison sentence had Nealy simply complied with Gould’s directive, left the library and not returned.
“It was a completely nonsensical case,” Jantzen said. He noted it was difficult to count the number of strikes as Nealy pummeled the victim.
“It just went way out of hand…It just went on and on and on,” the judge said.
Jantzen also ordered Nealy to pay more than $2,800 in restitution and directed him never to have contact with Gould again.
