Rape conviction nets Springdale man 12 years

FAYETTEVILLE -- A Springdale man convicted of rape was sentenced Friday to 12 years at the Arkansas Department of Correction.

Randy Harold Morris, 46, was found guilty by a Washington County Circuit Court jury about midday Wednesday after a day-and-a-half trial that began Monday. After the jury found Morris guilty of rape, he had a medical episode and was taken to a local hospital.

Later Wednesday, the jury recommended a 12-year sentence. Morris faced 10 to 40 years or life in prison.

Morris wasn't released from the hospital and able to attend court until mid-afternoon Friday. He appeared in a wheelchair and was wearing shackles. Details were not provided about his medical condition.

The rape occurred April 30, 2014, at the Sleep Inn motel in Springdale, according to testimony.

Prosecutors initially were hesitant to go forward with the case because of the victim's background but said they decided to take the case to trial after meeting with her extensively. The 22-year-old homeless woman from southwest Missouri testified she was dealing drugs at the time and had been doing methamphetamine regularly since she was 14 years old.

"She was so frank with the jury they believed her," said Brian Lamb, deputy prosecuting attorney. "Most of the things you would hold against a victim applied to her but she was up front. And, we did have physical evidence to corroborate her story."

The woman told jurors she met Morris when she traveled to Springdale from Seligman, Mo., to trade items she had stolen to a dealer named "Charlie Brown" in exchange for meth to take back home to sell.

The drug dealer introduced her to Morris and she returned to Springdale two days later to buy more meth, the woman told jurors. After they all smoked meth together, Morris gave the drug dealer money and he left to go get more drugs.

While the dealer was gone, the woman said she told Morris the dealer asked her to distract Morris while the dealer took a large sum of money Morris had in his motel room.

"Being a drug dealer I wanted to cut out the middle man. I had it in my mind I'd tell [Morris] about Charlie's plan to rob him," the woman said. "I had no intention of going through with the robbery. I was playing both of them."

Morris became angry and the two went in search of the dealer but were unable to find him and returned to the motel. "Charlie Brown" was never heard from again.

Back at the motel room, the woman told jurors she asked to take a shower because she'd been living out of her car. While she was showering, Morris came into the bathroom grabbed her out of the shower and carried her to a bed where he shot her up with an unknown substance that incapacitated her, bound her hand with zip ties then raped her vaginally, anally and orally.

Several syringes, some used, and zip ties were found in Morris' room along with a knife like the woman had described to police.

The woman said she didn't fight back against Morris during the assault but that it wasn't consensual. She said Morris never threatened her.

"All I wanted to do was make sure I was able to leave," the woman said.

Afterward, Morris sent the woman to a convenience store to get quarters so he could launder the bedding.

"I don't know, I almost felt programmed," the woman said.

While at the store, the woman passed the clerk a note saying there was a "bad man" in a room at the Sleep Inn but wrote down the wrong room number. The clerk called police.

The woman returned to the motel, gave Morris the quarters and feigned going to the lobby for breakfast to wait for police to arrive. Police found a packet of meth in the woman's pocket when they arrived.

The woman directed them to the correct room and police arrested Morris when he came out of the room to dispose of several items.

"She was just so believable. She admitted to everything she had ever done," said Shane Kerr, deputy prosecutor. "So why not believe her about this?"

Morris didn't testify at the trial.

NW News on 10/03/2015