POUGHKEEPSIE – Poughkeepsie native Roy Johnson, Jr., dubbed the “Courtyard Killer,” was sentenced to 58 ½ years to life in prison on Monday by Dutchess County Court Judge Edward McLoughlin.
Johnson, who was previously sent to prison for burglary and robbery, was convicted in May of this year of murdering 53-year-old Paul Kutz at the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel in the Town of Poughkeepsie in October 2022.
Before sentencing, Johnson heard from the victim’s widow, Nathalie, and brother Andrew, who both told of the devastating effects Johnson’s heinous crimes have caused.
“I stand here today, a broken person,” the wife of 27 years told the open court. Comforted by two of her sons, Matthew and Sean, Kutz said the murder “Shattered my life and the life of my boys,” while pointing out that Johnson has yet to show any signs of remorse.
Andrew Kutz, the victim’s business partner in their accounting firm, spoke of all of the good times he had with “my little brother” before asking Judge McLoughlin to impose a life sentence on Johnson for what he called “a brutal, senseless act.”
Senior Assistant District Attorney Kristine Whelan, who prosecuted the case against Johnson, credited all of the police agencies that assisted during the October incident and the forensics work conducted by the New York State Police that helped secure the conviction.
Echoing the sentiment of the widow, Whelan also said Johnson has failed to show any signs of remorse. The prosecutor also said, “There are no words to explain this extraordinary and horrific act of violence that the defendant inflicted on so many people,” before asking Judge McLoughlin to make sure Johnson serves “Every minute of the rest of his life in prison.”
Johnson declined to give a statement and deferred to his attorney, Joseph Gullino, who said the characterization of showing no remorse was false, claiming that Johnson expressed remorse on the day he killed Kutz. Gullino then asked the court to hand down the “maximum appropriate sentence under the law,” rather than the total maximum prison term which he described as “excessive and unfair.”
When the time came, Judge McLoughlin pointed out one of Johnson’s tattoos. “You have a tattoo of SMM, which stands for ‘strength, morality, and motivation,’ and I find that ironic.”
During the trial, the defense raised the possibility of mental health issues that the defendant allegedly suffers from. McLoughlin did not believe it. “You had a deranged tantrum,” he scolded Johnson, calling his self-diagnosis of mental illness a mechanism to alleviate him from the responsibility. “What you did is evil,” the judge said before handing down the sentence totaling 58 and one-half years to life in prison.
The sentences for each of the charges are as follows:
- Murder in the Second Degree: 25 years to life in prison.
- Two counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree: 15 years in prison plus five years of post-release supervision.
- Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Third Degree: 3 1/2 to 7 years in prison.
- Reckless Endangerment in the First Degree: 3½ to 7 years on the charge of Reckless Endangerment in the First Degree.
The sentences are to run consecutively. Johnson was also convicted of one count of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree, resulting in a sentence of 15 years in prison plus five years of post-release supervision which must run concurrently as a result of the facts of the case.
Johnson is scheduled to stand trial for the August 2022 murder and robbery of Darren Villani in the City of Poughkeepsie on September 11, 2023, in Dutchess County Court.
