Man in shooting-threat case put on house arrest in North Las Vegas
A man prosecutors say idolized the Route 91 Harvest festival gunman will be released into the care of a nonprofit group home, a judge ruled Wednesday.
Calin Hodges, 23, must spend his days on house arrest at a North Las Vegas home owned by Covenant of Love, which offers services for the mentally ill. His trial is expected to start May 14.
“If he does anything else outside of his compliance, they’re going to call house arrest, they’re going to call the court, and he’s going to stay there until his trial,” Hodges’ attorney, Malcolm LaVergne, told Senior District Judge James Bixler.
Hodges was indicted March 7 on a terrorism charge after telling members of Mountaintop Faith Ministries he identified with “every shooter.”
“I completely salute all mass shooters, honestly,” he said in a recording obtained by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
“They have the balls to do what I’m kind of scared to do,” he said, laughing. “That’s the only reason it’s never happened.”
On March 14, a judge ordered Hodges to be released on house arrest to Montevista Hospital on $15,000 bail, but recently he was transferred back to the Clark County Detention Center.
Bixler expressed concern Wednesday about surveillance at the group home.
“We don’t want him to be able to just wander out and away freely without the court and house arrest being notified immediately,” he said.
State prosecutor Frank LoGrippo echoed Bixler’s concern.
“What sort of armed guards does this facility have, or what sort of law enforcement presence is there?” he asked. “Now we have a problem because we have a defendant out in the community that has threatened to do mass shootings.”
But Charlene Bynum, a representative of Covenant of Love, told Bixler the home has 24-hour supervision and experience with house arrest regulations.
After his ruling, Bixler turned toward Hodges.
“Don’t screw this up,” he told him.
“Of course,” Hodges replied.
Contact Briana Erickson at berickson@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5244. Follow @brianarerick on Twitter.
