Charges have been dropped against a pair of individuals accused of attacking a Jacksonville man in Community Park.
Jacksonville Police reported that Michael Smith and Mondre White, both residents of Jacksonville, were arrested on March 14th for aggravated battery with use of a deadly weapon.
Jacksonville Police Lieutenant Brad Rogers testified in Morgan County Court that the victim was playing basketball in Community Park when two armed men exited a passing-by vehicle and attacked the victim.
Witness statements indicated Smith stabbed the man in the back with a knife, while White attacked him with a baseball bat.
Morgan County State’s Attorney Bobby Bonjean explains why the Class 3 felony was dismissed on October 7th.
“Mr. Smith waived his right to a jury trial and set it for a bench trial. My office attempted to contact the victim and two of the witnesses in the report, but we never heard from them. We weren’t able to get them in here. Since they didn’t cooperate in the prosecution, the case was dismissed. We had to dismiss against Mr. White as well because we didn’t have any cooperation from the victim or witnesses. My job is to present the state’s evidence and when there is no evidence to present I can’t proceed with the prosecution.”
During a previous court date, Judge Chris Reif had determined that probable cause existed to proceed with the case.