A Cygnet man is in jail after being sentenced on two cases, including fleeing police and criminal damaging.
Taylor Hunter, 34, appeared on Oct. 22 in the courtroom of Wood County Common Pleas Judge Matt Reger.
Hunter was indicted in July 2022 for felonious assault, a second-degree felony; and criminal damaging or endangering, a second-degree misdemeanor.
On May 31, 2022, on Interstate 75 at East Wooster Street, Hunter, who was a passenger in a vehicle, allegedly punched the driver repeatedly in the face. The driver pulled to the side of the road to defend himself when Hunger allegedly grabbed the driver’s right hand and bent the fingers backwards, trying to break them. The driver pulled back into traffic and Hunter allegedly started punching him again before grabbing the center console and ripping the top off. Hunter then got out of the car and started walking away.
The driver, who had had reconstructive surgery on his face five months previously, was treated at the hospital for a left eye socket orbital floor fracture, according to court documents.
A jury in May 2023 determined Hunter was not guilty of felonious assault but guilty of criminal damaging or endangering.
He was sentenced to 90 days in jail with 85 days suspended if he successfully completed two years on community control.
He violated the terms of community control when he was charged with failure to comply with an order or signal of a Bowling Green police officer on Nov. 18, 2023.
Hunter was indicted in December for failure to comply, a third-degree felony; and two counts operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol, a drug of abuse of combination of them (OVI), both first-degree misdemeanors.
On Nov. 18 around 1:55 a.m., he was clocked driving 37 mph in a 25-mph zone on North Enterprise Street in Bowling Green. He fled west on Ridge Street then south onto North Prospect Street. He continued through red lights at East Court and Wooster streets at a high rate of speed.
According to court documents, a pedestrian in the crosswalk at N. Prospect and E. Court streets had to run to the sidewalk to avoid being hit.
Hunter lost control after going through the East Wooster intersection, struck three parked cars and his rolled onto its roof.
He was taken to the police station where a breath test showed a result of 0.158.
A jury in August found Hunter guilty of failure to comply and OVI. The state dismissed the second OVI charge.
Reger imposed a sentence of five years of community control and 180 days in jail until a bed becomes available in the SEARCH community based correctional facility. He was ordered to successfully complete SEARCH and once completed, any remaining days in jail will be suspended.
His driver’s license will be suspended for eight years.
Reger also imposed a sentence of 45 days for the criminal damaging charge, to be served consecutively.
