A Callao man has been charged with first-degree property damage, a class E felony, over damage to a vehicle in Bevier on Aug. 8.
Roy Thompson is charged in Macon County Circuit Court case 26MA-CR00229. Prosecuting Attorney Joshua Meisner filed a second amended complaint on Aug. 10 alleging that Thompson knowingly damaged a 2012 Ford Focus in Bevier by breaking the driver’s side windows and smashing the windshield, and that the damage exceeded $750.
A class E felony carries one to four years in the custody of the Department of Corrections, a special term of up to one year in the county jail, a fine of up to $10,000, or both a fine and imprisonment.
What the probable cause statement says
Sgt. Holt Landorf of the Macon County Sheriff’s Office wrote that he was dispatched to a Bevier address for a report of property damage and made contact with the owner, who showed him a 2012 Ford Focus with the front and rear driver’s side windows broken out and the windshield smashed in. He wrote that the vehicle also had damage and paint transfer on the front driver’s corner, and that drag marks on the ground and dirt pushed up around a tire indicated the vehicle had been struck and moved between one and two feet sideways.
The owner and another witness told Landorf that the man they identified had been sending texts threatening to damage the vehicle, and showed him a message stating an intent to run into the white car, according to the statement. They also said the man had come to the location at least twice yelling threats and that they hid in brush during those visits.
The witnesses described the man as driving a Hummer, Landorf wrote. A Hummer passed the residence during the interview and the witnesses identified it. Landorf wrote that he conducted an investigative traffic stop and found red paint on metal tow links on the front of the Hummer that was consistent with paint transfer on the damaged vehicle, along with white paint transfer on the same tow links. A search incident to arrest turned up a large hammer on the driver’s floorboard within arm’s reach of the driver, which Landorf wrote appeared consistent with the windshield damage.
Bond and arraignment
Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Cody Wells filed a bond memorandum on Aug. 10 opposing any reduction in bond. Wells wrote that Thompson pleaded guilty to peace disturbance by fighting on June 25 in case 26MA-CR00127 and to hindering prosecution on Feb. 26 in case 26MA-CR00048, and that the State considers him a bond risk given two convictions within the last calendar year and the circumstances of the current charge. Wells also wrote that the State was unable to view urinalysis results and would oppose a reduction if Thompson tested positive for any illicit substance.
Judge Kristen Burks held a bond appearance hearing the same afternoon. According to the docket entry, Thompson appeared in custody and without an attorney, the State appeared by its bond memorandum, and Thompson was advised of his right to remain silent and his right to counsel. He was formally arraigned and entered a plea of not guilty. The court declined to amend bond, citing recent criminal history and the allegations in the current charge. Bond was set at $10,000, cash only, in the original felony complaint and remains at that amount.
The case is set for a counsel status and bond review hearing on Aug. 13 at 10 a.m. in Macon.
Charges are allegations. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.