By Emily Williams

Fighting among a group of women September 3 on Hoskins Road led to charges against three of them, who appeared in Batesville Municipal Court Wednesday.

Lashunda McMiller, 98 Will Stewart, Batesville, entered a not guilty plea to simple assault against Lawanda Henderson’s juvenile daughter.

“She jumped in a fight she wasn’t supposed to be in. I was fighting Portia,” McMiller said abruptly to Judge Bill McKenzie.

An October 23 trial date was set for McMiller.

The next two names on the docket involved the same fight and were filed by affiant Latasha Thomas.

The judge called Latesha B. Smith, 21 Lamar Thomas, Batesville, to the bench.

As she stood she hollered across the courtroom, “My name is Tisha!”

Smith was charged with simple assault against Latasha Thomas.

“Did you hit her?” the judge asked.

“Yes,” she replied.

“Why?” asked McKenzie.

“Because she’s on a fake Facebook saying stuff about me and she’s always calling the police for nothing so I gave her a reason to call the police,” Smith said.

The judge also addressed old fines of $812 that have been due since July 2011 along with her new fines of $313 for the simple assault charge.

“These fines are due by October 31 or you are spending 90 days in jail,” said McKenzie.
“Leave it alone. You don’t have to look on Facebook,” McKenzie said.

Portia Henderson, 126 Patterson St., Batesville, was also charged in the September 3 altercation, but had an aggravated assault charge amended by the District Attorney’s office to a simple assault charge due to lack of medical attention, according to Detective George Williford.
“Why is she not charged with aggravated? She hit me with a bottle,” Thomas said.

The judge explained that was a decision made by the DA.

Henderson, accompanied by her mother, entered a not guilty plea to the simple assault charges against Latasha H. Thomas.

Henderson’s mother told the judge, “They jumped her. They came in my yard.”

From the seats in the courtroom people started blurting out, “I am a witness! I saw it!!!”
“Now hush! This is not a street fight,” McKenzie warned.

A trial was set for October 23 for Henderson.

Charles Pryor, Broadway St., Batesville, had a disorderly conduct-failure to comply case continued.

Magan Stokes, 3048 Sardis Lake, Batesville, entered a not guilty plea to shoplifting. A trial was set for November 6.

Mitzi Williams, 432 Tubbs, Batesville, had a case for simple assault dismissed after the affiant, Ashley Landis, failed to appear to prosecute.

Williams also had old fines  of $253 that have been due since December 2012.

Lois T. Spain, 876 Sanders Rd., Batesville, was found not guilty of a domestic violence charge from 2011 after a brief trial.

Tickets
D’andre D. Cole, 112 Williams St., Batesville, entered the city’s work program in lieu of paying fines of $571 for no tag lights and driving while license suspended. Cole also had an old no seat belt ticket not paid.

Jake A. Joiner Jr., 205 Brooks St., Batesville, was fined $986 for no proof of insurance and driving while license suspended.