A West Plains man with a decades-long criminal history has been
charged after allegedly striking an elderly family member with a
baseball bat and preventing in-home healthcare workers from visiting the
man's home.
Timmy L. Frazier, 43, is charged with first-degree domestic
assault resulting in serious physical injury, a Class A felony, and the
unclassified felony of armed criminal action. Court records show the
charges were filed May 1 by Howell County Assistant Prosecutor Rizwan
Ahad, and a warrant with a $50,000 cash or corporate surety bond issued
the day prior was served May 7.
Frazier, who remains in custody, pleaded not guilty during
arraignment held May 10 in the courtroom of Associate 37th Circuit Judge
R. David Ray and is next set to appear in court on Friday for a
preliminary hearing with Public Defender Jack Paisley as his
representation, the records show.
According to documents filed with the court, Missouri
Department of Health and Senior Services Investigator Richard Rhoads
said an investigation into Frazier began after three hotline calls were
placed regarding the victim's well-being between March 20 and April 10,
alleging physical abuse, financial exploitation and medical neglect.
Frazier was reportedly living with the victim at the time of
the incidents, who has since been placed in a nursing home out of
concern for lack of proper care.
On April 4, Rhoads stated, he assisted an adult protective
services specialist with a visit to the victim's home and Frazier
reportedly admitted he prevented in-home healthcare workers from
visiting and had written a check on the victim's account to pay for
having the victim's vehicle towed.
During the investigation, the reportedly victim said Frazier
was not given permission to write checks on his account or drive his
vehicle. On April 10, Rhoads spoke with another family member of the
victim who said he had bruises "all over" from Frazier striking him with
a baseball bat, his head had been shaved, and Frazier had written
several checks on his account.
A week later, Rhoads interviewed the victim at the nursing
home and was advised by him that Frazier and some of his friends had
shaved his head against his will while laughing and "going on" the whole
time, and he wanted to fight back but knew he couldn't because of his
age and physical condition.
He was reportedly reluctant to talk about how he came to be
bruised but stated Frazier had put the bruises on him while he was mad
at him, the investigator said.
Medical records reviewed as part of the investigation showed the
victim had told staff at a local clinic Frazier caused the bruising by
striking him with a bat, and that, for about a month, he hadn't taken
medications he’d been prescribed for the prevention of heart attacks,
strokes, and heart damage because they were withheld by Frazier.
The victim had open heart surgery about 20 years ago and his
health showed an overall decline, memory problems and periods of
confusion, Rhoads noted in his report.
The investigator further stated he learned through interviews
and financial records Frazier had written checks, used the victim's
charge card to make purchases, and taken coins, with a combined value of
about $99, adding future charge card statements were expected to show
other unauthorized purchases by Frazier.
FRAZIER’S BACKGROUND
In 2000, Frazier pleaded guilty to three counts of
second-degree assault and a count of possession of a controlled
substance in two separate cases, the imposition of his sentence was
suspended, and he was handed a three-year sentence in 2003 with both
cases to run concurrently.
In 2006, he was handed a two-year suspended sentence and
required to participate in a drug treatment program on an unlawful use
of drug paraphernalia conviction. In 2008, he pleaded guilty to a
misdemeanor driving while intoxicated charge and paid a $400 fine and in
2010 entered an Alford plea to a misdemeanor charge of resisting arrest
and was sentenced to 30 days in jail. An Alford plea allows a defendant
to avoid admitting guilt while conceding the prosecution has enough
evidence to convict.
In 2011, Frazier was convicted of possession of a controlled
substance and sentenced to five years in prison. In 2013, he was
convicted of third-degree assault and resisting arrest in separate
cases, both misdemeanors, and sentenced to 183 days in jail for each, to
run concurrently with the 2011 sentence. In 2015, he was convicted of
felony resisting arrest while creating a substantial risk of serious
injury or death, with a suspended imposition of sentence that was later
upgraded to a three-year suspended sentence that was not executed
because he successfully completed probation.
In 2017, he was again handed a suspended sentence, five years,
after pleading guilty to the felony of stealing a vehicle, but again
avoided prison after completing a five-year probation. In 2020, he
entered Alford pleas to two charges of second-degree burglary in
separate cases and was first handed a suspended sentence on one case
that was changed to three years on both after a 2021 conviction of
possession of methamphetamine precursors. The sentences for all three
cases were to run concurrently.
Last year, he pleaded guilty to a 2021 misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence and was sentenced to 30 days in jail.
Full Article & Source:
WP man charged with beating elderly relative
