Savannah Johnson is regaining movement in spinal rehabilitation while prosecutors pursue six felony charges against a Camp Lejeune Marine.
WILMINGTON, N.C. — Weeks before a June attack changed nearly every part of her daily life, Savannah Johnson had finished college, displayed her work with other graduating artists and was looking toward a career built around the use of her hands.
The 22-year-old Michigan woman is now working through spinal rehabilitation after suffering devastating neck and back injuries in a Wilmington home. Her parents have said she was initially paralyzed from the neck down, but later reports described movement returning to her arms, feet and hips, followed by additional gains in mobility and sensation during specialized rehabilitation. The man accused of causing those injuries, Camp Lejeune Marine Isaac Ruiz, 26, now faces six felony charges, including attempted first-degree murder. Ruiz is being held on a $1 million secured bond. The allegations against him remain pending and have not been proven at trial.
Johnson’s recovery has been measured in movements that would have seemed ordinary before the attack. Her father, Ricky Johnson, described the return of movement in the fingers of her drawing hand as an especially emotional moment because Savannah had recently earned a bachelor’s degree in illustration from Northern Michigan University and hoped to work professionally as an artist. University records place her among graduating artists featured in the school’s spring senior exhibition. Her family also has described her as someone who sews her own clothes. The physical consequences of the assault therefore reached beyond walking and mobility, affecting the tools she expected to use for her career and creative life.
Johnson had traveled to Wilmington after graduation while exploring whether she wanted to relocate to coastal North Carolina. Family members told Port City Daily that she was staying with relatives, looking for work and considering a move later in the summer. Her father said she had met Ruiz on a double date before the assault but did not return his romantic interest. The family believes that rejection was connected to what followed, though police have not publicly announced a proven motive. Authorities accuse Ruiz of entering the home where Johnson was staying and attacking her. Her mother, Amanda Johnson, later recalled receiving a frantic call from a relative who said Savannah was unconscious.
The injuries described in arrest records and family accounts were extensive. Court documents cited by local news outlets said Johnson suffered fractures in her neck and upper back and injuries to blood vessels in her neck. Port City Daily reported a vertebral artery dissection and narrowing of a carotid artery. Her family said she required intubation and ventilator support, and Michigan reporting described a lengthy operation to address spinal and vascular injuries. Her parents remained with her in Wilmington for more than a month as doctors treated the immediate damage and began assessing what function might return. They have consistently avoided treating the earliest prognosis as the final word, instead focusing publicly on incremental progress through rehabilitation.
That rehabilitation eventually took Johnson away from Wilmington. Her family arranged a charitable medical flight to a specialized spinal rehabilitation program in the Midwest. Reports from Michigan and North Carolina described intensive therapy aimed at recovering strength and function in her limbs. Amanda Johnson said her daughter had begun moving her arms before the transfer. Ricky Johnson later said movement had also returned in her feet and hips. By late August, after the criminal case had expanded, the family said Savannah was continuing to gain mobility and remained determined in therapy. They noted that progress on one side of her body had been slower than the other, a reminder that the recovery remained incomplete.
As Johnson learned to navigate that new routine, the criminal investigation moved through several distinct phases. Police initially arrested another man, but prosecutors dismissed those charges after concluding the available evidence was insufficient and supported his alibi. Wilmington police said detectives continued reviewing surveillance video, interviewing people, analyzing evidence and following up on tips. Ruiz was arrested June 24 and initially charged with assault by strangulation, assault inflicting serious bodily injury and first-degree burglary. The 2nd Marine Division subsequently confirmed he was a mortarman assigned to 1st Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment at Camp Lejeune and said it was cooperating with the civilian investigation.
Two months later, a grand jury added attempted first-degree murder, robbery with a dangerous weapon and assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury. WECT reported that investigators had also obtained search warrants for Ruiz’s iPhone and vehicle. Authorities have not publicly disclosed the complete evidence supporting the newer counts. The indictment permits prosecutors to proceed with the allegations but does not establish guilt. Ruiz remained incarcerated after the additional charges were filed, and court-imposed release conditions associated with his bond included no contact with Johnson or her family if he were to leave custody.
A separate and still-unresolved detail emerged from the fundraising effort created around Johnson’s recovery. A Spotfund campaign listed a $2,000 contribution in the name Isaac Ruiz, according to Port City Daily. The donation carried a short message saying Johnson was becoming stronger and adding, “It will be over before you know it.” The contribution drew attention because Ruiz had by then been accused in the attack. Wilmington police did not publicly verify whether he personally made the donation or wrote the message. Asked about the matter, a police representative said the investigation was active and declined further comment. Johnson’s family also declined to discuss whether Ruiz had made other contact before his arrest.
The fundraising campaigns reflect another dimension of Johnson’s recovery: the practical costs of a severe spinal injury. Her family has cited medical treatment, physical therapy, travel and the possible need for accessibility changes at home. Michigan reporting said the family was considering construction of an accessible bedroom and bathroom because Johnson’s home did not have suitable space downstairs. Her parents also took time away from work while traveling between hospitals and rehabilitation facilities. Friends, relatives and strangers responded with donations, transportation and temporary housing. Ricky Johnson said people in Wilmington offered help even though they had not known the family before the attack.
Her parents have repeatedly described that community support alongside the violence that brought them to North Carolina. In an August television interview, Amanda Johnson said Savannah was giving rehabilitation everything she had and believed that the kindness surrounding her recovery had become an important counterweight to what happened. Ricky Johnson said his daughter had a specific goal beyond the abstract hope of improvement: she wanted to regain enough independence to make art again. Reports also said she hoped one day to return to the Wilmington hospital on her feet and thank the medical workers who treated her after the attack.
The Marine Corps has not publicly determined the outcome of Ruiz’s military status in the reports reviewed for this article. A spokesperson previously said administrative or legal action involving a service member facing charges is decided case by case. His civilian prosecution remains in New Hanover County, where the attempted murder indictment now sits alongside the original assault and burglary charges. The latest reporting listed an administrative court hearing for Oct. 12. No trial date has been announced.
Johnson, meanwhile, remains separated from that courtroom process by the demands of rehabilitation. The public record does not establish how much function she will ultimately recover, and her family has not presented the gains so far as a finished recovery. What is established is that movement once absent has returned in parts of her body and that she continues working toward the activities that defined her life before June: walking, using her hands and making art.
Author note: Last updated September 21, 2026.