A Marshall County man was sentenced to five years in prison Wednesday on charges he threatened a woman before she jumped from a moving vehicle in Land Between the Lakes last year.
55-year-old Stephen Driver had previously pled guilty to wanton endangerment, unlawful imprisonment, and terroristic threatening in Trigg County Circuit Court. A second-degree assault charge was amended down as part of the plea agreement. Police said Driver punched a woman causing severe injuries before she jumped from a moving vehicle on Energy Lake Road in June of last year. Driver left the scene and was arrested a week later.
Driver appeared with his court-appointed attorney before Circuit Judge C.A. Woodall and asked that his sentencing either be delayed or that he receive probation on the felony charges. Driver told the court on the same day his mother died recently, he fell off a house while cleaning the gutters and suffered injuries that will require surgery at some point.
Commonwealth’s Attorney Carrie Ovey-Wiggins read the court a victim impact statement. The victim, who was in the courtroom, said she still suffers from what she called a traumatic experience and has trouble being alone or in a wooded area similar to where the assault occurred. Ovey-Wiggins asked the court to deny Driver’s requests because of his prior convictions for domestic violence and three other felony charges.
Judge Woodall agreed with the Commonwealth and sentenced to Driver to a total of five years in prison with sentencing to be held at a later date.
WebReadyTM Powered by WireReady® NSI
