Rhodes

ELKINS — A Randolph County man this week received the maximum sentences on felony and misdemeanor assault charges for a 2023 stabbing incident involving his former spouse.

Mark Allen Rhodes, 57, appeared in Randolph County Magistrate Court Wednesday and was sentenced by Circuit Judge David Wilmoth to not less than one and no more than five years in prison for one count of unlawful assault, a felony, and to six months in prison for one count of domestic assault, a misdemeanor.

The two sentences will run consecutively and Rhodes will receive credit for time already served. Rhodes is not permitted to have contact with the victim or his daughter.

Before Rhodes was sentenced, his attorney, James Hawkins Jr., addressed the court and asked Wilmoth to consider issuing Rhodes’ sentences to run concurrently, arguing that the crime was a “single incident” that stemmed from a “highly emotional set of circumstances.”

When asked if he had anything he would like to say to court, Rhodes said he did not.

Wilmoth noted that, in the court’s eyes, there were two victims in this case. The victim of the stabbing, who is Rhodes’ former spouse, and also their daughter, who Wilmoth said was “present and observed what took place” in 2023.

Assistant Prosecutor Richard Shryock told the court that Rhodes had “completely refused to cooperate” with the pre-sentence report. He stated that he believed the nature of this crime constituted Rhodes receiving the maximum sentences for both charges and that both charges should be consecutive.

“The court is absolutely right. This was a heinous situation where the defendant stabbed his wife in the presence of his daughter,” Shryock told the court. “It’s had a serious impact, your honor. I’m sure the court’s read the victim impact statement… I think this is a case serious enough to warrant the maximum sentence on each of the charges and they absolutely should be run consecutively, your honor.”

Shryock added that while they cannot make the victim and her family whole, the court and prosecution can protect them from Rhodes. He also stated the victim did not wish to give her victim impact statement in-person.

Before issuing Rhodes’ sentence, Wilmoth said he had to take into consideration Rhodes’ previous charges and the facts of the case, as well as Rhodes’ behavior and actions, or lack thereof, with the court.

“The premise was to give your wife a hug and as she got close to you, you stabbed her in the back, and you stabbed yourself as well,” Wilmoth said. “Since then you refused… to engage in any kind of conversation regarding the pre-sentence report. It was really concerning to the court that when the plea hearing came, you entered into a Kennedy plea, or an Alford plea, rather than acknowledging or accepting what you had done.”

In October, Rhodes pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful assault, a felony, and one count of domestic assault, a misdemeanor. He was initially indicted on one count of malicious assault, a felony, and one count of domestic battery, a misdemeanor, in October 2024.

Rhodes entered into an Alford plea, also known as a Kennedy plea, meaning he did not have to admit to the criminal act and could assert his innocence, but he still accepted the imposition of a sentence.

During Rhodes’ plea hearing in October, Shryock informed the court of the factual basis for the case.

Shryock said that on Dec. 17, 2023, the Randolph County Sheriff’s Office responded to a residence in Mill Creek for a reported stabbing. The responding officer was advised that Rhodes had “stabbed his spouse” and then had stabbed himself. Rhodes was detained, and his chest and arms were “covered in blood” while deputies noted a laceration to his chest.

“What had happened, your honor, was the defendant (Rhodes) and the victim in this case were in the process of separating, having been married,” Shryock told the court in October. “(Rhodes) returned to the residence. The victim really didn’t want to let him in, but she did and while he was there, he went to try and hug her, your honor, and while doing that, stabbed her in the back.”

The victim suffered a hemopneumothorax, which Shryock described as when “air and blood collect in the space between the lungs and the chest wall.” The victim was transported by helicopter to Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown, where she was treated and released the next day, Shryock said. Rhodes was transported by helicopter to Ruby Memorial Hospital for his wounds as well.