A 28-year-old Little Rock man who inflicted bone-breaking injuries on a passing motorist while fleeing from police has been sentenced to 12 years in prison and ordered to pay the woman $20,500 in restitution for her medical bills and car repairs.
Torrence Jerel Deadmon's attorney, Danny Williams, had requested a long probation for Deadmon along with restitution, telling Pulaski County Circuit Judge Herb Wright during Monday's sentencing hearing that incarcerating Deadmon would not accomplish anything.
Deadmon, who has prior convictions for evidence tampering and theft by receiving, pleaded guilty to felony counts of fleeing and failure to stop for an injury accident in September.
Deadmon, who did not testify Monday, needs drug treatment, not prison, Williams said.
"Putting him into jail is not going to fix the drug problem," Williams said. "I don't think sentencing him to an extended term in prison will serve any good."
The Nov. 12, 2016, crash that seriously injured 34-year-old Jasmin Nichols was a symptom of Deadmon's long struggle with addiction, Williams said.
Deadmon did not have anything illegal on him when he collided with Nichols, breaking bones in her back, thigh and hip, the attorney said. He also asked the judge to consider that Deadmon is a newlywed who has just become a father. That's further motivation for his client to successfully complete probation, Williams said.
Nichols, a pharmacy technician, testified Monday that she was almost home when Deadmon's 2003 Ford F150 pickup ran the red light at 36th Street and John Barrow Road about 10:45 p.m. and crashed into her car.
Nichols told the judge she never saw Deadmon coming as she drove through the intersection.
"I had no idea what was going on," she said. "All of a sudden there was flashing lights, and the truck hit me."
Deadmon's truck hit her driver's door, forcing firefighters to cut her out of the mangled vehicle, she said. Deadmon had no car insurance, so she had to pay her $500 deductible plus medical bills that amounted to at least $20,000, she said.
Nichols said she still has pain from her injuries and driving can cause her anxiety. Recuperating forced her to take two months off from work, including a month of forced bed rest, which made caring for her 8-year-old son very difficult, she testified.
"I had a son to take care of, and I couldn't," Nichols said. "He obviously had no disregard for my life or anyone else's."
Deputy prosecutor Jeanna Sherrill asked for a lengthy prison sentence, given that Deadmon, who was on parole at the time of the crash, will be parole eligible after serving two years in prison on the 12-year maximum term.
She said Deadmon, fleeing police, showed a callous disregard for human life. Trying to elude police, he reached speeds of 97 mph, drove into oncoming traffic, forced other cars off the road and struck another vehicle head-on, but kept on driving until he broadsided Nichols' car.
Sherrill showed the judge dashboard-camera video from patrolman Adam Morgan's car. The three-minute excerpt could not be seen from the audience, but the sound was a cacophony of racing engines, police sirens and Morgan's radio reports to dispatchers. It was twice punctuated with what sounded like car collisions.
Morgan told the judge he was at the intersection of University Avenue and Colonel Glenn Road when he saw a car pull into a nearby convenience store, with a pickup close behind.
The woman driving the car was Deadmon's wife, 21-year-old Kaylin McElwee, and she called out to the officer that the truck was chasing her and had rammed her vehicle, Morgan told the judge.
The pickup drove off, and Morgan chased it, he testified. Court records show the couple had been married about 10 months at the time.
Questioned about whether he should have broken off the chase, Morgan said he consulted with his supervisor, who approved the pursuit.
In May 2014, police identified Deadmon as the getaway driver for an armed robber who was fatally shot while trying to ambush an off-duty Little Rock officer.
Jovon Allen, 21, put a gun to the back of Scott Stovall's head while the 25-year police veteran was loading a vehicle in the parking lot of the Vantage Point Apartments on Rebseman Road.
Stovall fought Allen off, then drew his own gun and shot him in the chest. Allen ran a short distance, turned and fired again at Stovall before getting into Deadmon's waiting car, police said.
Deadmon drove Allen to CHI-St. Vincent Infirmary Medical Center, where he died in the emergency room.
Deadmon was subsequently charged with evidence tampering for hiding Allen's gun in the hospital parking lot.
He pleaded guilty to the charge in January 2015 in exchange for a sentence of two years in prison followed by a four-year suspended sentence.
Deadmon also has a 2011 conviction for theft by receiving, stemming from his December 2010 arrest in Little Rock with a stolen gun.
Metro on 01/12/2018