Hearing held for woman accused of ramming trailer with truck

Jul. 16—A preliminary hearing was held Friday morning for the woman who allegedly rammed her commercial truck into her boyfriend's mobile home in May.

Calhoun County Judge Randy Moeller ruled that there was enough probable cause in the case of Rhonda D. Young, 56, of Piedmont, to be bound over to a grand jury. Young has been charged with four separate offenses, including attempted murder, with a total of $87,000 bond. She is currently held in Calhoun County Jail.

Young was present Friday morning, the black eye visible in her original mugshot apparently healed.

Representing Young was defense attorney Shelby Scott. Assistant District Attorney Eric Snyder called Piedmont police Investigator James Michael Devoe to testify during the proceedings on behalf of the state.

Devoe told the court that on or about May 30, around midnight, he was called to investigate a domestic disturbance at the 600 block of Piedmont Cutoff. When he arrived at the crime scene, Devoe said the commercial truck was still in the front of the trailer and an emergency medical team was leaving the location. Devoe said the victim, Marcus Larone Garrett, was transported to a local hospital for the injuries he sustained during the incident.

Garrett's leg had been pinned between the truck and the mobile home, according to Devoe.

Devoe spoke to Young at the scene and she told him she "felt like Marcus was having relations," with his stepdaughter, who was also in the home with her 1-year-old son when the incident occurred. Neither the stepdaughter nor the child were injured in the crash.

According to statements Young made to police the night of the incident, Young was attempting to hit a Jeep that was parked about five feet from the doorway and not the actual house, Devoe said.

Evidence at the scene suggested that the truck's brakes had not been used in the crash, but rather the tires "kept spinning" even after impact, Devoe said.

The mobile home itself suffered significant damage as it was moved approximately four feet from its original foundation. Devoe said he "believed" that the trailer could not be repaired and that it would be labeled as a "total loss."

Young allegedly fled into the nearby trees as officers "pulled her out of the woods" where she was hiding upon their arrival, according to Devoe. He said she actually "scared" the officers as she "popped out of the woods" on them.

Young's defense attorney argued that though Young had no prior criminal charges, Garrett had several, including domestic violence and drug charges. Snyder objected to the relevance of the victim's criminal history to this case, and Scott said that it established credibility of the witness' testimony.

Scott asked Devoe if it were possible the case could be labeled as "negligent" rather than "intentional." Devoe said intent was given as soon as Young admitted she tried to hit the Jeep. Driving a 3,000-5,000 pound truck in the direction of another living person, whether she meant to hit him or not, it was intentional, Devoe said.

Scott also argued to have Young's bond reduced by half, and asked that she instead be ordered to spend 12 months in a drug rehab center since she has no prior arrest record. The judge held off on making a ruling on her bond, as the victim was not present to argue against it.

After all testimony was heard, Moeller ruled that he felt there was enough probable cause to bind the case over to a grand jury to move forward in the criminal prosecution.