Alexis Bates of Lakeview needed money to bail her boyfriend out of jail, but instead of obtaining the funds in a conventional way, she opted to beat the money out of a victim with a baseball bat.
The 18-year-old Bates entered a guilty plea to a charge of attempted aggravated robbery stemming from the incident, which took place in early November last year, during a session of Baxter County Circuit Court Thursday. She was given 10 years probation.
Largely because of her age, she was sentenced under provisions of Act 346, meaning if she stays out of trouble during her lengthy probation period, she can apply to the court to have her record sealed.
In sentencing her, Judge Gordon Webb said Bates “was too young to have a felony on her record” and told Bates it was “up to you to take advantage of the opportunity” she was being given.
According to the probable cause affidavit, Bates had been texting on a “continuous basis” asking the victim about obtaining funds to pay her boyfriend’s bail. After the victim stopped responding to her many messages, Bates and two other people were reported to have pulled up to his house. Bates was armed with a metal baseball bat.
Bates first checked the door and finding it locked, she allegedly smashed a window with her bat to gain entry. The victim reported he grabbed the bat and attempted to defend himself. At one point, the two people accompanying Bates joined in the attack on the victim. The victim was reported to have been hit with the bat at least once.
The victim said in a short while, a neighbor’s porch light came on and Bates and her confederates fled the scene. Apparently, the trio left without any money.
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