Dispute over hay leads to suspect choking, kicking man in head

Tyler Williams, born in 1992, of Caulfield, has been summonsed to appear in Ozark County Court before Associate Judge Raymond Gross at 9 a.m. Oct. 15, for a case in which he’s charged with felony assault and property damage. 

According to the probable cause statement, prepared by Ozark County Sheriff Cass Martin, at 9:30 a.m. Aug. 31, 2023, the sheriff received information about an assault that took place on County Road 349 in Caulfield. 

The Ozark County Sheriff’s dispatch report from that date explains that the victim in the case called the OCSD and told a dispatcher that he bought hay from Williams the prior year, which he resold to two people in Bakersfield. Both of those people said the hay was terrible, and the caller gave their money back and went back to the owner of the hay originally. Ever since that time, the two men have had problems, the report says.

On Aug. 31, of last year, Williams reportedly blocked the county road, preventing the victim from leaving. He then got out of his truck and asked when the victim was going to pay for the hay. The victim reportedly replied that it was bad hay and he was not going to pay him for it. The victim’s wife told the officer that Williams began kicking and choking her husband. The wife went down the county road to ask a neighbor who saw the fight if he was going to do anything. The neighbor said he also knew it was bad hay and he wouldn’t have bought it either. The victim said that he had multiple teeth broken out, and each tooth cost $3,750 to repair. He said his eye glasses were also damaged, which cost $1,100 to repair. 

The victim told the sheriff that he had suffered minor scrapes on both his legs and had markings on the left side of his head where Williams had kicked him in the head. 

Both charges are class E felonies. If convicted, Williams faces up to 4 years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine on each charge. 

Bethany Turner of West Plains has filed as Williams’ attorney in the case.