Mullins sentenced to 8 years in prison

CELINA - A Celina man was sentenced to more than eight and a half years in prison for assaulting his wife, evading authorities for about two months and then threatening his adult daughter not to testify against him.

Mitch Mullins, 44, was sentenced to six years in prison for a charge of second-degree felonious assault and a consecutive six months in prison for a fifth-degree felony charge of escape. He was sentenced to 30 days in jail for each of two fourth-degree misdemeanor charges of menacing, to be served concurrently with his prison time.

Mercer County Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey Ingraham also tacked on 737 days in prison to his total sentence because the offenses occurred while Mullins was on parole. Ingraham said the court found it necessary to add the time due to the danger Mullins posed to the public, noting Mullins usually was quick to commit another offense, typically a violent one, when he had been free between prior prison sentences.

Defense attorney William Mooney said his client deserved to be punished for what he'd done but asked the court on Friday to impose less "tack-on" time than the full 737 days. He said he felt the court didn't have the full picture of Mullins' relationship with his now ex-wife, Jessica.

He also said Mullins had been diagnosed with several disorders and showed signs of several more disorders, according to a professional at Foundations Behavioral Health. Mullins had either been diagnosed with or had shown possible signs of conditions including bipolar disorder, general anxiety, antisocial personality disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Mooney also said his client's diagnoses could indicate another disorder called intermittent explosive disorder, which he said was characterized by sudden, often unwarranted, bursts of rage.

While his client's mental state was not an excuse, he said, the court should take into account Mullins' neurological state and consider that Mullins had been reacting to certain stressors the night of the assault.

Mullins briefly addressed the court, saying that his actions were all in the past.

Mullins' ex-wife and the victim of the felonious assault charge chose not to appear in court on Friday, according to Mercer County Prosecutor Matthew Fox. However, she had submitted a statement, which Fox read in the courtroom.

According to the statement, Mullins had reportedly cost his ex-wife the expense of rehabilitation, several personal effects that he had pawned for drug money and thousands of dollars in custody battles. She could reportedly no longer afford the collateral damage Mullins causes.

In addition to monetary costs, Mullins had also reportedly cost his ex-wife a final meeting with her dying mother. The family had reportedly known that Jessica Mullins' mother would die due to cancer within days of the assault. Her mother reportedly died the day Jessica Mullins checked herself out of the hospital after the assault, and she had been unable to see her one final time.

Mercer County Assistant Prosecutor Erin Minor presented a PowerPoint presentation in court detailing Mullins' past offenses, arguing that Mullins had earned the disputed additional 787 days in prison. Along with being a violent offender, Mullins had shown a particular penchant for violence against women, Minor said.

Mullins' criminal history spanned three decades, according to Minor. Many of his offenses were violent acts, with many of those violent offenses being against women.

"Jessica wasn't his first victim, and she won't be his last," Minor said.

In regard to the current case, Minor said on the night of the assault, Mullins had gone to his ex-wife's house and was bragging about a job opportunity. Jessica Mullins reportedly made the comment that if he would be making so much money, maybe Mullins could repay what he owed her, and the assault began.

Jessica Mullins was later transported by ambulance to a local hospital and then transferred to another medical facility with serious head injuries.

Mullins fled the scene and was apprehended two months later south of Delphos, reportedly in a van owned and operated by Jessica Mullins.

After Mullins was apprehended, Minor said he used prison connections to deliver a letter to his adult daughter, who had been present the night of the assault. The letter threatened her not to testify against him, Minor said.

As part of the PowerPoint presentation, Minor showed pictures of Mullins's ex-wife after several incidents of domestic violence over the years. The pictures showed her bruised and other times with a face covered in blood, lying on gurneys or in hospital beds and showed patches on her scalp where hair had been torn out.