The mother of the Los Angeles woman who killed her husband and baby before killing herself in a 100 mph head-on crash has said her daughter battled “legions of demons.”
Danielle Johnson, 34, murdered fellow Air Force veteran Jaelen Allen Chaney, 29, and their eight-month-old baby in their apartment in Woodland Hills, California, on April 8.
She fled the scene with her two daughters and pushed them out of the car on Highway 405. The baby was hit and killed by another vehicle, but her nine-year-old sister pulled over to the side of the road and called for help.
Her mother, Sharonda Cole, says she was struggling with mental health issues, “low vibrational energy” and postpartum depression.
Johnson made a series of unhinged social media posts talking about an impending apocalypse and the solar eclipse that would bring the “ultimate spiritual war.”
The mother of Danielle Johnson (pictured), who killed her husband and baby before killing herself in a 100mph head-on crash, has said her daughter battled “legions of demons”.
The 34-year-old mother murdered fellow Air Force veteran Jaelen Allen Chaney, 29 (pictured) and her eight-month-old baby in their apartment in Woodland Hills, California, on April 8.
Police found Johnson’s body 15 miles from the family home. He crashed into a tree and committed suicide.
Cole was told her daughter had died and she killed her partner and her baby.
“Then they told me about Jae, and that was the worst,” he told the newspaper. Los Angeles Times. “They told me she had murdered her boyfriend.”
‘I lost it. My heart was pouring out.”
Johnson promoted herself as a “reiki master” trained in alternative healing. On her website, she claimed that she had “spiritual gifts” and that she came from a “rich lineage of indigenous shamans and healers.”
She was considered a popular “star seller” on Etsy and sold several audio series that focused on aura cleansing and healing energies based on astrological signs.
Essence.com even praised Johnson as one of the best black astrologers to follow, calling her commentary “on point, funny and relatable.”
Johnson had a considerable social media presence with 100,000 people following his astrological advice and purchasing items for his “magic candle” rituals.
But his mother said he was battling “legions of demons” and struggling with mental health issues.
Cole tried to get Johnson to seek help and thought he should see his own reiki healer or talk to a therapist.
“No one knew what was going on because she was very good at appearing good,” he said. “But she wasn’t well for a while.”
Johnson shared a series of alarming posts on his social media page just days before the murders.
Posting on his X profile page, he said: ‘Wake up, wake up. The apocalypse is here. Everyone who has ears listens. Your time to choose what you believe is now.
‘If you think a new world is possible for people, retweet now. There is power in choice. There is power in choice!!!!’
Another post added: ‘This eclipse is the epitome of spiritual warfare. Put your protection and your heart in the right place.
‘The world is obviously changing right now and if you ever need to choose a side, now is the time to do the right thing in your life. Stay strong, you got this.’
Cole was 17 when she gave birth to Johnson and the couple lived with her uncles.
At age 17, Johnson was in high school and living and his mother was struggling with drug addiction at the time.
Her mother, Sharonda Cole, says she was struggling with mental health issues, “low vibrational energy” and postpartum depression.
Chaney, pictured here with his mother Juanita, joined the Air Force when he was 22 years old.
Danielle Johnson’s Social Media Posts Became More Alarming Days Before Solar Eclipse
Cole worked to stay sober, but said she struggled to repair her relationship with her daughter before Johnson began working with Reiki.
“She began working with me, trying to help me heal not only the wounds between her and me, but also the wounds from my childhood,” he said.
Johnson often told her mother how difficult her life was and the postpartum depression she struggled with in 2015.
‘She saw that I was the one who hurt her. And her father, of course, is not present,” Cole said.
Johnson shared a blog post about “toxic parenting” where she said this could happen to those who are not adequately loved by their parents.
She wrote: ‘These children often grow up wanting to give others the love they never had. In turn, they rarely consider giving themselves that experience of love first.
“I think she completely understood, but she couldn’t diagnose or treat her own injuries,” her mother Cole said.
“She thought she could ignore these same behaviors, choosing instead to blame me, and then refused to allow forgiveness to occur so she could finally release what was causing her pain.”
Los Angeles Police Department officials provided more details about how the tragedy unfolded.
Investigators said Chaney and Johnson were heard arguing around 3:40 a.m., and at some point, the fight turned deadly when the 34-year-old woman stabbed her partner.
Chaney was found in the family’s apartment by a neighbor who saw blood “spilling” under the door.
LAPD officials said the bloody knife Johnson used to stab Chaney was found in the home.
Outside their home, a neighbor told DailyMail.com that the couple kept to themselves and received everything at their home.
The family’s apartment was in a luxury condo building in Woodland Hills.
Johnson then fled the apartment with her children before her car was seen on Highway 405, where witnesses saw the baby and nine-year-old boy get out of the vehicle, LAPD said.
Johnson then drove to Redondo Beach at speeds of more than 100 mph when he crashed his car head-on into a tree and killed himself.
Chaney’s distraught brother Matthew Chiricas told DailyMail.com that his brother had “embraced” Johnson’s eldest son from a previous relationship as if he were his own.
“I had never seen him as a child, but I know he absolutely adored her.”
Chaney was described as warm and outgoing with a smile that lit up rooms and his friends said he was funny and popular.
Cole said: ‘He just wanted to love her. He wanted to love her the way she said she needed to be loved.