MESA, AZ – A Mesa man has been handed a 17-and-a-half year prison sentence following a violent attack on a child welfare caseworker, an incident that played out live on social media last year.

The assault unfolded in early November 2024, at an office building on Alma School Road and Southern Avenue, a location that houses a Department of Child Safety branch. De’Andre Terrell Johnson, upset over the handling of an interview with his daughter, confronted a caseworker while simultaneously streaming their interaction on Facebook.

Authorities said the meeting had just concluded and the caseworker was leaving the lobby when Johnson, still recording, approached from behind, seized the worker in a chokehold, and declared threatening statements. Onlookers in the building called for him to stop as the caseworker struggled for air. The caseworker ultimately lost consciousness during the two-and-a-half minute ordeal, captured by Johnson’s own livestream.

Surveillance and video evidence later showed the immediate physical toll on the victim, who displayed visible signs of distress and incapacitation. After the worker collapsed face-first onto the tile floor, Johnson approached again, reportedly reapplying the chokehold upon realizing the victim was still breathing.

Following the attack, Johnson fled the scene. He was later tracked to Scottsdale, where a brief police pursuit ensued before he was apprehended by law enforcement.

The caseworker survived but suffered significant effects from the assault. Authorities emphasized the gravity of an attack on a frontline employee tasked with child protection.

Earlier this year, a jury found Johnson guilty of attempted first-degree murder. He was also convicted on multiple disorderly conduct charges and a felony count related to fleeing law enforcement.

During sentencing, prosecutors underscored not only the violence of the act but the chilling decision to livestream the attack for public viewing. Johnson’s actions, they said, put the well-being of public servants and the community at risk.

Officials from the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office described the attack as an unprovoked ambush on a professional fulfilling his obligation to protect vulnerable children.

Johnson will serve the sentence in an Arizona state prison. He received no possibility of parole for the attempted murder conviction.