By Matt Ledesma
Times Record News
WICHITA COUNTY, Texas — Jurors in 89th District Court on Wednesday took less than an hour to convict 29-year-old Ronnie Jraun Otems Jr. of all but one of the charges brought against him by state prosecutors.
Otems, already serving time for a previous felony conviction, was found guilty Wednesday of two counts of aggravated assault on a public servant stemming from a September 2009 attack at the Wichita County Jail Annex. Otems also was convicted on charges of escape while confined and deadly weapon inside a penal institution, but was acquitted of a single count of attempted aggravated assault on a public servant.
The punishment phase of the trial began shortly after the verdicts were read and is expected to continue at 9 a.m. today. The same jurors will recommend sentencing to presiding Judge Mark Price following the conclusion of both the state’s and defense’s cases.
Lead prosecutor Ben Hoover described Otems as a violent, uncontrollable offender during his closing arguments to jurors. Hoover reviewed statements Otems made to investigators following the attack at the jail that showed a disregard for the safety of the detention officers involved, according to Hoover.
Otems was found guilty of escaping from his solitary cell in the early morning hours of Sept. 23, 2009, then accessing an electrical breaker to turn off half of the lights at the facility. Otems then used the cover of darkness to attack two detention officers with self-made shanks and his fists.
Otems took the stand Wednesday morning to describe the events of the attack himself, specifically how he was targeting Officer Michael Bonnin that day. He said Bonnin had been harassing him in the weeks before the attack.
“I asked him to leave me alone. I felt like he’s the type of person you need to teach to leave you alone,” Otems said referring to Bonnin. “I was going to make somebody listen. That’s how I felt.”
When asked by Hoover if he felt his attacks were justified, Otems replied, “In my own way, yes I was.”
The state called a string of witnesses during the punishment phase, all of whom alleged they had been assaulted or threatened by Otems while they were employed at state prisons or jail facilities where Otems was incarcerated. In two instances, Otems was said to have blocked out lighting fixtures inside his cell, then physically fought with officers who came inside.
Two of the officers testified Otems had stabbed them during similar confrontations, once with a razor blade and another time with a self-made shank.
Hoover also brought to the attention of jurors Otems’ lengthy criminal history. Otems himself admitted during his testimony to being in and out of custody since he was 13.
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