Ray Alvin Wyckoff
An 80-year-old man was found guilty of one count of aggravated assault and disorderly conduct, and not guilty of battery and terroristic threatening by a Baxter County Circuit Court jury Thursday.
The state and defense attorney Sam Pasthing agreed to a sentence of four years of supervised probation. If the state and defense agree on a sentence, the jury is not tasked with recommending one.
The jury foreman told Circuit Judge John Putman the panel agreed with a sentence of probation, and did not want to see Ray Alvin Wyckoff of Elizabeth go to prison because of his age and medical conditions.
Wyckoff’s charges stem from an altercation he is reported to have had with a couple living along Cedar Court in the Hand Cove area in late August last year.
Deputy Prosecutor Kerry Chism said Wyckoff took it upon himself to step into a situation that was alleged to have involved bad blood between a couple – Terry and Idella Schuman – and a close-by neighbor, Daniel Markovich.
According to information presented during the trial, the conflict stemmed from an incident on Memorial Day last year when juveniles were alleged to have been riding ATV’s on the Schuman’s property after 10 p.m.
Terry Schuman testified the noise of the machines woke him and he went outside to investigate. He said he believed one of the ATV drivers intended to run him down and he punched the person.
The driver, who suffered a broken jaw, was reported to be a teenage friend of a relative of Markovich’s.
The Schuman’s alleged that the conflict had resulted in them being harassed by the neighbor and his friends.
Chism told the jury that Wyckoff, “did not even have a dog in the hunt. He just decided on his own to drive over to the Schumans’ home and take care of the situation.”
Both Terry and Idella Schuman testified they had no idea who Wyckoff was.
Wyckoff’s charges stem from an incident on August 31 last year when he stopped his truck in the road in front of the Shuman’s house.
The couple reported they were doing yard work when the truck pulled up.
They told investigators they asked Wyckoff, if they could help him, and he became belligerent.
He is alleged to have said he was there because he “just wanted to see what a man who hits kids looks like.”
According to the probable cause affidavit in the case, Wyckoff was reported to have challenged Terry Schuman by saying, “Why don’t you hit me. I have a gun. I’m here to shoot you.”
Wyckoff is also alleged to have made derogatory comments about Idella Schuman.
The couple testified they tried to defuse the situation by walking away from Wyckoff. When they passed in front of his truck, Wyckoff is alleged to have pulled forward in an attempt to block their path.
The victims then tried to walk behind the truck. Wyckoff exited the truck and started to follow them.
More words were exchanged, eventually leading to a physical altercation. Wyckoff drew a pistol at one point, according to the probable cause affidavit.
He is said to have repeated his threat to shoot Terry Schuman, who then said he moved closer to Wyckoff and was struck in the mouth.
Terry Schuman testified he was able to disarm Wyckoff. During the struggle, Wyckoff himself was injured sustaining a wound to the head that caused what was described as “severe bleeding.”
When Wyckoff took the stand, the story turned 180 degrees. Wyckoff claimed Terry Schuman was the aggressor.
He said both Terry and Idella Schuman had been armed the day of the altercation. Both denied the allegation.
He said he only stopped in front of the Shuman’s house to look through the trees and see if a door on Markovich’s shop was open.
He said if the door was open, he would know Markovich was “up and around.”
When asked if he had cursed the Schuman couple and called the wife by a derogatory name, Wyckoff testified he “does not curse. No, I did not do that.”
Markovich took the stand and confirmed Wyckoff’s claim. He said, “he doesn’t curse and he even gets on me when I do.”
During cross-examination, Wyckoff often said he could not remember details of the incident. “I was knocked out and was not right in the head.”
During a discussion of a 9 millimeter-pistol belonging to Wyckoff that was said to have been the weapon involved in the altercation, he seemed to remember having the gun in several locations in his truck, including a large toolbox in the bed of the vehicle, the floorboard and a side pocket in the door.
Terry Schuman said after he took the pistol away from Wyckoff, he gave it to his wife and she eventually took it into the house and put it on a table. It was turned over to investigators once they arrived on scene.
According to the probable cause affidavit, the story Wyckoff gave investigators did not match video footage captured by the Schuman’s security system.
The jury saw the video footage of the event.
As a convicted felon, Wyckoff will not be allowed to be around weapons. If such contact is discovered, his probation could be revoked.
After the charges were filed against Wyckoff, the court issued an order in early November last year prohibiting Wyckoff from having any contact with the victims.
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