AMHERST – A Madison Heights woman convicted of running over her estranged husband while driving a minivan in an Amherst County parking lot was sentenced Wednesday to three years in prison.
Angel Louise Crews was found guilty in March in Amherst County Circuit Court of one count each of attempted second-degree murder, child abuse, malicious wounding and reckless driving. She was arrested shortly after the Nov. 16, 2017 incident in the parking lot of Tractor Supply Co. in Madison Heights.
She struck Tyler Connelly while driving a 2016 Chrysler minivan occupied by several others, including her small child, in a “deliberate act” observed by various witnesses in the Amelon Square Shopping Center around 3 p.m., Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney Stephen Eubank said. Eubank said Crews was upset Connelly was cheating on her and, following a confrontation, Crews struck Connelly with the vehicle and drove over top of him.
Connelly was airlifted to the University of Virginia Medical Center. His injuries were “just horrific” and he suffered a number of fractures, Judge Michael Garrett said Wednesday.
Garrett observed a video of the incident taken from surveillance footage, which he described as “chilling.” The couple had a dysfunctional relationship and Amherst County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to their home for domestic calls about 50 times, Heather Goodwin, Crews’ attorney, said in court.
“Obviously, this is a very volatile situation,” Garrett said of the encounter. “In this case, right or wrong, regardless of what he had done, it doesn’t justify running him over in the van.”
Eubank said Crews wasn’t thinking of loved ones who depend on her, which several parties testified to during Wednesday’s hearing, when she struck Connelly.
“She was completely remorseless at the scene,” said Eubank.
Goodwin said Crews, who is pregnant, was in an “ugly, detrimental relationship” that saw her threatened and abused. She committed an isolated “very bad mistake” and is not a threat to the public, Goodwin argued.
“She did wrong … she has sought every possible program for self-improvement there is,” Goodwin said. “If either party had walked away …we wouldn’t be here today. She messed up and she’s lucky someone didn’t die.”
Goodwin read a statement on Crews’ behalf that said she thinks about the incident every day and can’t put into words how she felt when it took place. She’s become a better woman and mother since her incarceration, Goodwin read from the statement.
Garrett sentenced Crews to 22 years, suspending all but three years, and credited her with time served. He also ordered her to pay $4,701 in restitution.