Man convicted in attack with SUV
Former girlfriend fled in terror but was struck and injured; son escaped
A jury convicted 43-year-old Danielle Rush on Thursday of attempted second-degree murder for attacking his former girlfriend and her son with his SUV.
Witnesses testified during the trial this week that Rush came to the apartment complex where Rhonda Alexander lived and chased and hit her with the vehicle, causing serious injuries on Aug. 24, 2013. She told jurors how she fled in terror in an attempt to escape the SUV.
Police said in an affidavit he tried two times to strike Alexander’s son, Christian Alexander, then 18. He also nearly hit Rhonda Alexander’s daughter, Tamica Cook, 27, and struck a residence where 65-year-old Burrell Jones was sitting, according to the affidavit. The incident happened in an apartment complex on Scenic Pines Court near Airways and East Holmes.
Rush also was convicted of vandalism, reckless endangerment and aggravated assault. He had faced one count of attempted first-degree murder, but the jury convicted him of the lesser charge of attempted second-degree murder. He will be sentenced July 30.
Assistant Shelby County Public Defender Robert Gowen asked the jury to consider that Rush was panicked because he had been attacked and that he could not see, because his glasses were knocked off and he has vision problems.
“He lost control of the car,” Gowen said. “He was trying to get away.”
During the trial, Rush testified that he went to the complex where he was chased and one man punched him.
“I was scared, panicked, trying to think about getting out of there,” he told Assistant Shelby County Public Defender Ben Baker.
He denied trying to hit Christian Alexander and said he jerked the SUV fast to avoid Tamica Cook.
“In the process I hit Rhonda,” he said, crying.
Asst. Dist. Atty. Chris West briefly told jurors the “Wizard of Oz” story in a closing statement and then asked them to focus on facts and reality. “We are not in Oz,” he said. Asst. Dist. Atty. Gavin Smith told the jury the case was not about whether Rush has bad eyesight or needs glasses. He said the case was about what he did the day he took his Ford Explorer and tried to kill two people.
“Guilty as charged is the only verdict that truth dictates,” Smith said.