The Southern Standard, by Duane Sherrill —
Charges were dismissed for lack of evidence after a woman said her brother tried to crush her with a front-end loader full of dirt.
The defendant, Charles Stewart, had charges of assault with a deadly weapon dismissed Tuesday by Judge Larry Ross, with the judge saying the case needs to be better developed before it is presented.
Stewart was charged with the felony offense after his sister, Geneva Eversole, said she was confronted by him during a visit to Oak Tree subdivision, a development he owns. Eversole claimed she was there to look at property. However, Stewart’s attorney, Robert Newman, questioned why she would be there when she was under a court restraining order, telling her to stay away from her brother due to earlier threats she allegedly made against him.
Eversole countered she was not there to antagonize her brother, but was there for business purposes when she was confronted by her brother, driving a front-end loader full of dirt, on one of the roads there.
Eversole maintained she was blocked by the piece of heavy machinery until her brother backed the loader in beside her and then motioned, as if she was to pull around and go on. However, Eversole said it was seconds later when her brother swung the bucket, hitting her driver’s side window and shattering it. Eversole presented pictures of her damaged car, noting she suffered whiplash from the incident.
For the defense, Newman asserted Stewart was trying to drive away from his sister, suspecting she was in his subdivision for no good.
“This was your way of getting back at him,” Newman suggested, noting she was angry for the restraining order against her.
In light of the evidence he heard, Judge Ross said there was not enough evidence to bind the case to the grand jury, noting Eversole could exercise the option to take her case before the grand jury at a later date.