Man accused of nearly hitting officer with car: Judge denies motion to dismiss charge
ASHEVILLE — A judge denied a motion to dismiss an assault with a deadly weapon charge May 31, and a jury saw video of an incident in which the defendant allegedly almost hit his then-probation officer.
Lewis Rodney Lytle Jr., 32, is accused of using a car as a deadly weapon against Jacob Stamey on the afternoon of Feb. 10, 2021. He pleaded not guilty.
"I absolutely would have been hit," had he not jumped out of the way of the car, said Stamey, who worked as Lytle's probation officer with the North Carolina Department of Public Safety.
Stamey and two other DPS officers testified that they saw Lytle at Hillcrest Apartments that day while looking for two different people. They attempted to serve open warrants to him, they said.
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Stamey testified that, at first, Lytle appeared to comply with an arrest by lifting his fingers over a steering wheel, but quickly reversed and then left the apartment complex. Answering questions from attorneys as the video played, Stamey said he had "jerked" out of the way.
Video showed a crowded road lined with cars, with at least one on the street "double-parked," or parked next to cars within proper spaces. During his opening statement, prosecutor
Exactly what happened in the video was not immediately obvious to jurors as several stood up and walked to the television, and at one point Stamey could not point himself out with certainty.
Lytle hit some cars as he left, prosecutor David Lampert said during his opening statement. There were no complaining witnesses for car damage, Stamey said.
Officers testified that they did not go to Hillcrest to find Lytle specifically.
During opening statements, both sides of the courtroom referenced the video to jurors, but with different interpretations. Lampert said the case was "not complex," and that Stamey had to jump out of the way after Lytle put the car in drive. Chief Public Defender Sam Snead agreed that the case was not particularly complicated, but said the car was driving away from Stamey rather than towards him.
The state would have to prove that the car was used as a deadly, dangerous weapon, and it could not do that, he told the jury.
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The video was caught on cameras at the complex.
After jurors watched and left for the day, Snead motioned to dismiss Lytle's assault with a deadly weapon charge, but the motion was denied by Judge Athena Brooks.
Lytle faces the following charges in the case, according to a court calendar:
Felony assault with a deadly weapon upon a government official
Misdemeanor resisting a public officer
Reckless driving, wanton disregard
Testimony heard May 31 was exclusively from law enforcement, with the three probation and parole officers and one Asheville police officer who mostly spoke about video cameras at Hillcrest.
Lytle's trial is scheduled to continue June 1.
Ryan Oehrli is the breaking news and social justice reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times. Email coehrli@citizentimes.com or call/text 252-944-6816 for tips.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: First trial day: Man accused of nearly hitting officer with car
