Fields
The sentencing hearings of two involved in a 2023 kidnapping and severe assault of a Columbus man have both been rescheduled to February, according to court records.
Ashton Fields, 19, of 762 Clifty Drive-C was set to appear in Bartholomew County Superior Court 1 Wednesday at 2 p.m., and Emily Franklin, 19, of Commiskey was to appear at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday. By request, Fields’ sentencing hearing has now been rescheduled to Feb. 11 at 10 a.m., and Franklin’s to Feb. 11 at 10:30 a.m.
Fields and Franklin, alongside Charles Breedlove, 18, of 2017 14th St and Zablin “Jai” Woodruff, 19, of 238 Hughes St, were all originally charged with robbery resulting in serious bodily injury as a Level 2 felony and Level 3 felony counts of kidnapping with serious bodily injury, criminal confinement resulting in serious bodily injury and aggravated battery causing serious permanent disfigurement.
Franklin had been living with Fields for a month prior to her arrest, but Franklin filed a protective order after he allegedly became physically abusive. When asked in June of 2023 how she felt about Fields, she blamed him for her getting involved in the assault.
Fields accepted a plea bargain last May allowing him to plead guilty to one felony charge, that being assisting a criminal as a Level 5 felony. The agreement calls for him to serve a maximum of four years in prison and remaining time to be spent in some form of Community Corrections program.
To receive this deal, Fields must testify truthfully during legal proceedings for three co-defendants, according to Judge James Worton. According to a probable cause affidavit, Fields’ involvement in the crimes was limited compared to the others charged in the attack.
Franklin also accepted a plea bargain last May where she agreed to plead guilty to a lesser charge of assisting a criminal as a Level 5 felony. All original charges would be dropped in exchange and prosecutors agreed she would not serve more than four years in prison, with additional time spent on probation if a longer sentence is given.
She would also have to agree to truthfully testifying about Breedlove, Fields and Woodruff. If terms are honored and she continues to display good behavior, Worton said he would consider dropping the felony charge down to a Level 6 felony, lowering the sentencing range to six months to two-and-a-half years and meaning she could serve time in the Bartholomew County Jail rather than state prison.
Breedlove accepted a plea bargain last February and was sentenced to 20 years, with at least 10 of those years served in prison. He will spend five years following incarceration in a Community Corrections program and the remaining time will involve conventional probation, Worton said. Breedlove also agreed to pay $8,587 in restitution to the victim.
Woodruff’s change of plea hearing is scheduled for Jan. 5 at 9:15 a.m. His jury trial is then scheduled for Jan. 27 at 8:30 a.m.
On June 2, 2023, Franklin drove the then 19-year-old victim to a barn on Bonnell Road, where the three males were waiting, on the false pretenses of getting something to eat. Breedlove, Fields and Woodruff, who were wearing masks, dragged the victim out of the vehicle, punched in the face, pistol-whipped and beaten with a stick, investigators said in a probable cause affidavit.
The victim received multiple cuts and had liquid poured on him that burned his eyes and wounds. Breedlove also pointed a pistol at the victim’s head multiple times while saying he was going to die. After taking the victim’s sweatshirt, shoes and iPhone, the defendants left the barn.
The victim told police he went to four different houses for help before receiving help at the residence of Indiana State Police Trooper Rick Roseberry.
