Roanoke man avoids jail time after plea in slashing case

Source: The Roanoke Times, Va.迷你倉Sept. 24--A man accused of slashing his roommate and several friends during a fight on the night before Thanksgiving avoided jail time Monday when he pleaded no contest to lesser charges.Herbert D. Paschal, 26, of Roanoke was charged with four counts of malicious wounding after the November incident at his apartment left several people wounded. As part of a plea agreement with the Roanoke prosecutor's office, each of the charges was reduced to misdemeanor assault and battery.Circuit Court Judge William Broadhurst accepted the agreement and sentenced Paschal to a year in jail for each offense, with all of the jail time suspended. Paschal was placed on unsupervised probation for two years and ordered to pay restitution to the victims.According to evidence presented by Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Chrystal Smith on Monday, Paschal and his roommate hosted a gathering on Nov. 21, 2012, to celebrate Thanksgiving with friends at their apartment in the 1700 block of Empress Drive.They had argued earlier in the day, and the tension lingered into the evening. After dinner, Smith said, Paschal went into his roommate's bedroom and a physical altercation broke儲存倉out.When that had been broken up, Paschal left the room and several people prepared to leave the apartment, Smith told the court.But then, according to evidence Smith presented, Paschal returned and began swinging an iron by its cord. He then picked up a knife and waved it around at the people trying to leave.Roanoke police responded shortly before midnight that evening and found several people in the parking lot with stab wounds. They were taken to Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital.One man's arm wound required 32 staples, Smith said. Four people, including Paschal's roommate, filed charges for malicious wounding.Paschal told investigators he had been jumped and used the knife to defend himself. He said in court Monday he disagreed with the evidence Smith presented, but pleaded no contest as part of the plea agreement.The four felony charges were reduced to misdemeanor assault and battery, and Paschal won't serve jail time if he does not violate the terms of his probation.Restitution is due to the victims within two years.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 The Roanoke Times (Roanoke, Va.) Visit The Roanoke Times (Roanoke, Va.) at .roanoke.com Distributed by MCT Information Services迷你倉