A Shelby County judge on Wednesday ordered Johnny Dansberry back into custody, finding probable cause on a slate of violent charges and yanking his bond after hearing that he allegedly reached out to the claimed victim following his arrest.
In a post from the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office, officials said Assistant District Attorney Jessie Nabors presented the case at a preliminary hearing, where the judge found probable cause for aggravated kidnapping, aggravated assault, and domestic assault. The case now heads to a grand jury for possible indictment, and the judge revoked Dansberry’s bond after hearing evidence that he contacted the victim after he was taken into custody, according to the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office.
What the charges mean
Under Tennessee law, aggravated kidnapping is treated as a high-level felony that can bring stiff penalties when prosecutors can show the specific elements laid out in statute. The offense is defined in Tenn. Code §39‑13‑304. Aggravated assault, which is charged here together with domestic-assault counts, is detailed in Tenn. Code §39‑13‑102 and can be pursued as a felony depending on what the state says happened in the underlying incident, as explained in FindLaw / Tenn. Code §39‑13‑102.
Preliminary hearings and why they matter
Preliminary hearings are meant to test whether the state’s evidence is strong enough to show probable cause and move a case forward to a grand jury. They operate under rules that limit what kind of testimony can come in, including certain hearsay, and set deadlines for when the hearing has to take place. Those procedures and standards are laid out in the Tennessee Rules of Criminal Procedure, Rule 5.
Bond revocation and next steps
Judges in Tennessee can pull a defendant’s bail if that person breaks conditions of release, picks up new charges while out, or otherwise does something that threatens public safety or the integrity of the case. State law gives the court broad authority to act in those situations, and Tenn. Code §40‑11‑118 and related sections spell out the factors that go into bail decisions and when revocation is allowed.
If a grand jury later issues an indictment, the case will move on to arraignment and be placed on the criminal court docket. If the grand jury declines to indict, Tennessee statutes require that the defendant be released from the case, as provided in Tenn. Code §40‑4‑102.
Local context
The Shelby County District Attorney’s Office regularly spotlights bond rulings and key courtroom moments in its “Case of the Day” posts, giving the public a window into how individual prosecutions are unfolding. One example of those case updates is available on the DA’s site at Shelby County District Attorney.
The Dansberry case remains in front of the grand jury for now, and additional details are expected to surface if an indictment or new court filings are made public.
