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Wesley Thomas Hall pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon causing bodily injury to a couple who were cut by shattered glass. The woman said she also suffered back and neck injuries when her husband pushed her out of the way of the oncoming pickup.

Hall crashed his vehicle into the Movie Gallery, 601 Texas Highway 110 North, in Whitehouse on Aug. 10.

Stephanie Alexander, 14, said she and a friend were at the movie store when she saw Hall drive into the parking lot like he was going to park. Instead, he kept driving and smashed through the glass.

"I was really scared ... I thought he wasn't going to stop," she said. "I didn't know what to think."

Whitehouse police Officer Jacob Trest testified that Hall appeared very intoxicated and agitated and was worried about what would happen to him but was not concerned about the victims.

Trest said Hall admitted to smoking marijuana earlier that evening and performed poorly on a field sobriety test. He was arrested for DWI and reckless damage and obstruction of property but was indicted for the aggravated assaults.

In 2004, Hall pleaded guilty to driving while intoxicated after he damaged Austin Bank property, he said.

Bobbie Fletcher said she was at the counter and her husband was near the door when she heard what she thought was an explosion. Her husband tackled her to get her out of the way and she hit a pole and the counter. The couple was cut with glass, which started shooting up again when Hall reversed his vehicle. Ms. Fletcher said her husband again tried to protect her and in the process "wrenched" her neck. The incident agitated her old back problems, causing her to go to the doctor three times a week, miss work and take medication.

Hall's mother, Brenda Hall, said she began suspecting drug use after her son lost his grandmother and two close friends. He was diagnosed earlier in life with attention deficit disorder and depression. She said two days before he was to be released from a drug treatment program, Hall discovered he had warrants out for his arrest and turned himself in to jail.

Assistant Smith County District Attorney Stacy Cunningham asked 114th District Judge Cynthia Stevens Kent to sentence the man to 15 years in prison but defense attorney Brett Harrison requested deferred adjudication probation.

Ms. Cunningham said he was a danger to the community and that his reckless driving and drug use had escalated.

Harrison said what Hall did was reckless but his client was not a criminal, did not have an evil heart and did not intend to cause damage or hurt anyone. He absolutely got on the wrong path but is trying to turn his life around, he added.

Hall also pleaded guilty to graffiti, admitting that on May 24 he spray-painted school property in Whitehouse.

Judge Kent sentenced him to seven years probation for the aggravated assault cases and six months in jail, to run concurrently with the six-month sentence in a state jail facility for the graffiti charge. He was also assessed a $1,000 fine for the graffiti and restitution in each case.

Hall admitted to using alcohol, the prescription drugs Vicodin and Xanax, marijuana, Ecstasy and cocaine.

Casey Knaupp covers county, state and federal courts. She can be reached at 903.596.6289. e-mail: news@tylerpaper.com