Disabled Pahrump man beaten by group of teens

Nye County sheriff’s deputies are seeking information on the beating of a mentally disabled Pahrump man late last month.

The incident occurred in broad daylight along Leslie Street near Gally Road just before 4 p.m. Feb. 27, when the victim, identified as John Francis Bird, ran an errand on his bicycle to a nearby dollar store.

Out of nowhere

After completing his purchase, Bird’s legal guardian, Ginger Stumne, said her client was riding his bike back home, when a group of teenagers in a car pulled over and began to assault Bird for no apparent reason.

“The car ran him off the road then pulled in front of him,” she said. “About five or six teenagers, including the driver, jumped out of the car, threw him on the ground and started punching him and kicking him in the face, chest and everywhere. They stole all of his items that he bought and took off.”

As far as a motive for the attack and theft, Stumne said she is at a loss to explain the violent behavior from the group of teens which included at least two females.

Stumne said she learned of the assault when Bird arrived back home and called her.

“When I got off the phone with him, I then I called the sheriff’s office and paramedics and told them to respond to his residence, and that’s where they met me,” she said. “John was hysterical and he told me he had just gotten jumped by a bunch of kids. He was beaten up and very bloody. He suffered a lot of facial wounds, so there was a lot of blood on his face. They busted up his eyebrow and his cheek. There were also bruises all over his shoulders and arms.”

Upon their initial examination of Bird, paramedics transported him to Desert View Hospital for X-rays, and additional tests, including a CAT scan.

After determining no major injuries had occurred, doctors released Bird within a few hours.

Stumne now wants to see justice administered to the group of teens who allegedly attacked Bird.

“John is a protected person because of his mental incapacity,” she said. “He is a ward of the court, and I have been his legal guardian since 2014. They probably did not realize that he is a disabled, protected person and they had just committed a major crime.”

Intimidating appearance

Though Bird’s mental capacity is akin to that of an adolescent child, Stumne said he is a very imposing figure, in terms of his physical size and stature.

He is essentially a “gentle giant.”

“He’s 50 years old and 6-foot-8, and weighs about 260 pounds, but he has the mental capacity of about a nine year old,” she said. “It took a bunch of teenagers to put him on the ground and beat him. It was both girls and guys beating him up. John is recovering pretty well but we want to see if his neurological issues have been exacerbated by the kicking to the head and punches to his face. He has an appointment set up with doctors later this month for more tests and examinations.”

At present, Stumne said Bird has been closely associated with one woman for past two decades.

“John and his girl have been together for 21 years,” she said. “They’re just not legally married on paper. A few days after the attack, John had taken a cab to Subway to get a couple of sandwiches for himself and his girlfriend, when he thought he saw the driver of the car. There were dirty looks exchanged, but John didn’t know what to do, so he didn’t do anything. He was so scared that the guy was going to jump him again.”

Life-altering experience

Though most of Bird’s cuts and abrasions have since healed, he personally said he has more healing go through.

“I only rode my bike once since this happened,” he said. “I used to ride every day, but now it’s been sitting in the garage. I don’t know when I will ride again because I am laying low and I’m trying not to think about it all. I just hope the sheriff catches them.”

Stumne also noted there is limited information on the description of the vehicle the teens were riding in.

“From what the witness described, the car was a goldish, tan, late-model Toyota Camry,” she said. “It was dirty and filled with a bunch of kids, one of them being fairly overweight. If anyone has information or may have seen something, please call the sheriff’s office at 751-7000.”

Additionally, once captured, Stumne considered a novel type of punishment for the perpetrators.

“I think they should be made to stand on the corner of Highways 372 and 160 with a sign that says, I beat up elderly and disabled people,” she said. “The social view of what they have done, I think will hurt them the most. Two witnesses who saw it said they thought the kids were anywhere from 17 to 19 years of age.”

Efforts to gain additional information from the Nye County Sheriff’s Office, including what charges the teens could possibly face, was unsuccessful by press time.

Contact reporter Selwyn Harris at sharris@pvtimes.com. On Twitter: @pvtimes