Las Vegas man who idolized mass shooter to receive treatment

A Las Vegas man who told a church member he idolized the Route 91 Harvest festival mass shooter was ordered Wednesday to undergo mental health treatment.

“I’m sorry to have been so irresponsible as to have brought this inconvenience upon myself and to whoever else was involved,” Calin Hodges told District Judge Elissa Cadish at a sentencing hearing. “I’m sorry to anyone I’ve threatened or offended or frightened in the process of this whole ordeal.”

Last month, Hodges pleaded guilty but mentally ill to a bomb-threat charge.

Along with mental health and substance abuse evaluations, Cadish also ruled that Hodges, 23, must serve five years of probation.

Hodges could have faced between one and six years behind bars, but prosecutors did not argue for prison time.

His lawyers, Ivette Maningo and Malcolm LaVergne, have said that at least one of Hodges’ statements that drew the attention of authorities was made after he was approached by a church elder at Mountaintop Faith Ministries, which he had attended several times, for “spiritual healing” during an evening Bible study.

Hodges was homeless and “in crisis” at the time, while not receiving medication for his mental illness, Maningo said.

“Now he understands that unfortunately although they are words, they’re serious,” the lawyer said. She added that under the sentence Hodges would receive “the help that he needs.”

In a March indictment, prosecutors said at least 40 people were at the church service when Hodges proclaimed he would become “the greatest mass shooter in history,” referencing Mandalay Bay gunman Stephen Paddock, who killed 58 people and injured hundreds more before killing himself Oct. 1. Hodges was indicted on a terrorism charge.

In handing down the sentence, Cadish called the statements “scary” and “perceived as a threat,” while noting that investigators found no weapons in Hodges’ possession.

“Having said that, I appreciate that those folks called the authorities so we could address the issue before anything more serious happened,” the judge said.

Contact David Ferrara at dferrara@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-1039. Follow @randompoker on Twitter.