Computer Times
REDGLASSES
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REDGLASSES' Murderer Gets Life Sentence
Sher Bolter AKA "REDGLASSES," a contributing editor to Computer Times as well as a friend of the editors, was murdered in September, 1999, as he worked at home on his computer, shot in the head through the outside door. No apparent motive, nothing taken, no one seen leaving the scene. All Sher left in the world were his two "pups" that were his only children, a 91-year-old aunt whose mind is sharper than most 40-year-olds on most days, and many friends and associates who mourn his death.
The article below is reprinted from the Courier-Journal, in Louisville, Kentucky. It was written by Deborah Yetter on January 21, 2004.
dyetter@courier-journal.comMan gets life sentence for murder, arson
Disbarred lawyer ordered to pay $443,633 restitution
A Daviess County man was sentenced to life in prison without parole yesterday in U.S. District Court for masterminding a criminal scheme that included the 1999 murder of a Louisville man and a series of arson fires around Kentucky.
William Anthony Johnson, 60, a disbarred lawyer who also has lived in Louisville and Spencer County, was sentenced for his role in the scheme that included the murder of Sher Bolter, who was shot in the head through the front door of his Highlands home as he worked at his computer.
One of the nine houses burned was a home Bolter had owned on Douglass Boulevard.
Judge Thomas Russell also ordered Johnson to pay $443,633 restitution – including the $5,861 cost of Bolter's funeral.
Johnson spoke briefly to raise several objections to his trial and sentence, and told the judge he plans to appeal.
Johnson was convicted last April 28 of running the scheme that included Bolter's murder, burglaries and the house burnings between 1998 and 2000 in an attempt to collect insurance money.
At trial, federal prosecutors presented evidence that Bolter — Johnson's former associate — was killed after he became angry at Johnson and others involved in the criminal activities and began informing on them to police. Before that, Bolter had been involved in some of their schemes, including the theft and sale of computers, prosecutors said.
Johnson helped arrange Bolter's murder, according to testimony at the trial.
Johnson's lawyer, Jack Smith, argued for a lesser sentence, arguing that Johnson's health is deteriorating and that he suffers from heart disease and other physical ailments, as well as mental and emotional problems.
But Russell said he saw no reason to depart from the life term calculated under federal sentencing guidelines.
Also sentenced yesterday was Christopher Stone, who participated in Johnson's scheme. Stone, who had been found guilty of racketeering at a separate trial last year, received a 20-year prison term.
The article below is reprinted from the Courier-Journal, in Louisville, Kentucky. It was written by Shannon Tangonan on May 24, 2002. stangonan@courier-journal.com
Man sought in Louisville slaying is captured - Officers apprehend fugitive in Daviess County
Authorities last night apprehended a Daviess County man charged in a racketeering operation that included murder, arson and insurance fraud.
William Anthony Johnson, 59, of Utica, who is also known as Tony Johnson, was taken into custody by law-enforcement officers in Owensboro, the FBI said. The FBI, Louisville police and Daviess County Sheriff's Office had been searching for Johnson after an attempt to apprehend him Wednesday night failed when he fled on foot from his home, said Stephen Tidwell, special agent in charge of the FBI in Kentucky. Johnson was indicted Wednesday by a federal grand jury in U.S. District Court in Louisville, along with Christopher L. Stone, 49, of Louisville and David W. Dabney, Sr., 46, of Crestwood, said Stephen B. Pence, U.S. attorney for the Western District of Kentucky. It was not known last night whether the other two men were in custody.
The racketeering indictment also named Johnson and Stone as co-conspirators in the Sept. 24, 1999, fatal shooting of of Sher Bolter through the door of his home at 2220 Dorothy Ave. in Louisville. A house that Bolter had owned nearby on Douglass Boulevard was destroyed by an explosion and fire about a year later. Police at the time investigated whether the slaying and the fire were related. .
The indictment alleges that between Feb. 24, 1998, and Sept. 28, 2000, Johnson, Stone and Dabney were involved in a series of racketeering activities including arson and insurance fraud, Pence said. All three men are charged with engaging in racketeering activities and participating in a racketeering conspiracy, Pence said.
Dabney is charged separately with intimidating a witness. The indictment also charges Johnson with several other felonies including possession of counterfeit money, bank fraud, possession of guns and ammunition by a convicted felon and mail theft, Pence said, adding he is also accused of possessing counterfeit $100 bills and defrauding Republic Bank, Pence said.