IONE – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation officials are investigating an attack on a peace officer at Mule Creek State Prison (MCSP) as an attempted homicide.
On July 7, 2025, at approximately 8:30 a.m., incarcerated person James Johnson allegedly attacked a correctional counselor as the counselor entered the housing unit.
Staff used chemical agents to quickly quell the attack, and an improvised weapon was found at the scene.
The counselor was immediately taken to the Triage and Treatment Area and then transported to an outside medical facility. He is currently in good condition.
Johnson was placed in restricted housing pending investigation into this case. MCSP officials are currently investigating the incident. The case will be referred to the Amador County District Attorney’s Office for possible felony prosecution.
The facility where the incident occurred is on modified programming to complete a 24-hour threat assessment.
Peer support and other support services are being offered to employees.
Johnson, 48, was most recently returned from parole with a new term from San Diego County on Feb. 4, 2003. He was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole for first-degree murder as a second striker and sexual battery as a second striker with enhancements for intentional discharge of a firearm causing great bodily injury / death and prior felony conviction of serious offense under PC667(a)(1)[01].
MCSP, which opened in 1987, houses more than 3,800 minimum-, medium- and maximum-security incarcerated people. The prison, located in Amador County, provides educational, medical and mental health services.
James Johnson
Contact: CDCR Press Office OPEC@cdcr.ca.gov
For Immediate Release: July 7, 2025