Darrey Lynn Hart, charged with criminal attempt to commit murder after attacking his mother and stepfather, has again rejected a plea agreement offered by the state. The fact he was turning down the latest plea agreement was made in Baxter County Circuit Court Thursday.
The 45-year-old Hart is serving time in the North Central Unit of the state prison system at Calico Rock on an earlier conviction.
If he continues to turn down pleas, his trial date will come up later this month, unless a continuation is approved.
The charges against Hart stem from a violent incident in late November last year in which Hart is alleged to have attacked his mother and stepfather in their mobile home located along Big Pond Circle where Hart was also reported to be living.
Investigators from the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office were dispatched to Baxter Regional Medical Center’s emergency room where they interviewed the victims, both of whom were reported to be in their 60s.
The stepfather said he had gone to the residence for lunch shortly after noon on November 29th. He said he found Hart had been arguing with his mother, and confrontations between the two were frequent. The stepfather said he told Hart to leave his mother alone so the stepfather could go back to work and not have to worry about them fighting.
Hart, who had allegedly been drinking, and his stepfather became involved in an altercation. The stepfather told investigators he was able to grab Hart under the arms, and the two of them fell to the floor. The stepfather said he was able to get up and grab a closet dowel sitting by a door and told Hart he needed to stop being aggressive. He said Hart went into his bedroom and came out wielding a large knife with a blade of approximately 8 inches in length. The stepfather said Hart came at him brandishing the knife. He said Hart’s mother attempted to get between the two males and began to struggle for the knife as well.
When Hart saw the large amount of blood produced during the fight, he left the area. The stepfather suffered a deep cut to the left wrist and cuts to the right hand. The mother was said to have “skin tearing” to the left forearm, cuts to the right hand and a large wound to the chest.
Hart was found later in a Mountain Home hotel motel room and taken into custody. He told officers he had acted in self-defense and accused the stepfather of being the initial aggressor.
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