Two men who were the subjects of an extensive manhunt on May 10 appeared in Baxter County Circuit Court Monday.
Thirty-nine-year-old Terry Shumate, Jr., of Mountain Home and 56-year-old Charles Richard Cox both face charges stemming from an incident that kicked off the manhunt.
Cox’s charges include residential burglary, aggravated assault, being a felon in possession of a firearm, possession of drugs and drug paraphernalia criminal trespass and theft of property.
Shumate faces charges of aggravated residential burglary, fleeing, being a felon in possession of a firearm, aggravated assault, theft of property, endangering the welfare of a minor and being a habitual offender.
Cox and Shumate both entered not guilty pleas to their charges. They both appeared via video hookup from the county jail.
The two men were allegedly involved in the theft of property at a residence along County Road 99. The homeowner told deputies he saw two men taking the articles.
After being caught in the act, Shumate and Cox were reported to have fled in a vehicle. The victim obtained a license number and began chasing the suspects.
According to the probable cause affidavit, the vehicle occupied by Shumate and Cox stopped at a point along County Road 36 and shots were fired out the window at the pursuing victim.
The victim was not hit and continued chasing the fleeing vehicle until he lost sight of it.
After an extensive manhunt, Shumate was arrested at a mobile home along County Road 35 where he had barricaded himself.
The residence was occupied, but a woman and her child were able to escape out the back door and were reported not to have been injured.
Shumate is being held in the county jail with bond set at $250,000.
Cox was arrested May 15 at a residence in the Clarkridge area. His bond is set at $100,000.
According to a Baxter County Sheriff’s office incident report, a deputy went to an address along Somer View Drive in Clarkridge looking for Cox.
He was met at the door of the house by Diana Cox, identified as Charles Cox’s wife. Cox had criminal charges filed against him for attacking his wife of 23 years in early March last year.
The case is still active. In fact, Cox was due in court on the day he was arrested in Clarkridge to have a trial date set for the domestic violence case.
The deputy reported asking the woman if Charles Cox was in the home and she denied it, saying she had not seen him in a very long time.
The woman’s hands were said to have been shaking and she “had extreme difficulty keeping eye contact” with the deputy as they talked.
She finally allowed the deputy into the house, and he found Cox under a bed. He was ordered out of his hiding place and taken into custody.
His wife had taken out a protective order to keep Cox away from her at the time of the 2022 attack and Cox was also charged with violating that order.
It is not spelled out how long Cox had been at the address in violation of the order. It was listed as the couple’s home when the 2022 charges were filed.
DOMESTIC BATTERY CASE
Cox was due in court May 15 on charges that he had assaulted his wife. It was reported he had smashed her foot and ankle area with his boot as she laid on the floor.
She suffered a broken bone in her foot, according to the probable cause affidavit.
The attack occurred March 2, 2022 but Cox’s wife said she was too frightened to report it until about eight days later.
The investigative report alleges Cox returned to the couples residence along Somer View Drive in Clarkridge around midnight March 2.
He was upset and began arguing with his wife of 23 years. The dispute centered around Cox’s Social Security payments and what was happening to the money, according to the probable cause affidavit.
The victim said when she tried to get up from her chair, Cox pushed on her chest knocking her back down.
The victim was able to get up again, but fell to the floor. It was at that point that Cox is reported to have “stomped her ankle and foot with his boot.”
The victim sought medical attention and learned one bone in her foot was broken and another fractured.
She said she was initially afraid to return home, fearing what Cox might do. For a time, the victim stayed away from the couple’s residence.
The wife told investigators the recent event was not the first example of violence involving the couple. She said they had both been jailed for domestic abuse but that this time was “different” because of the intensity of the violence that left her with broken bones.
Cox had rejected a plea offered by the state and said he wanted to go to trial in the domestic violence case. He was on the circuit court docket for May 15 to set a date for that trial.
He did not show up because he had been arrested that morning on charges filed in the chase case.
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