Woman pleads guilty in two-by-four assault

LORD, MELISSA — 11/15/21 — BATTERY

Date: October 05, 2022

An Augusta woman who hit a friend in the head with a two-by-four pleaded guilty Tuesday, Oct. 4, in an agreement that should release her from jail soon.

Melissa Lord, 43, pleaded guilty in Richmond County Superior Court to aggravated assault. Judge Amanda Heath accepted the negotiated sentence of one year in custody followed by nine years of probation.

Lord has been in jail unable to post bond since Nov. 13, 2021. On that day after an argument over money with a friend, Lord hit the other woman in the head with the board, said Assistant District Attorney Dre’Kevius Huff.

Lord had prior convictions for family violence battery in 2009, 2010 and 2018 and three in 2019. She also has a pending battery charge, according to court records.

Sandy Hodson is a staff reporter covering courts for The Augusta Press. Reach her at sandy@theaugustapress.com. 

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The Author

Award-winning journalist Sandy Hodson The Augusta Press courts reporter. She is a native of Indiana, but she has been an Augusta resident since 1995 when she joined the staff of the Augusta Chronicle where she covered courts and public affairs. Hodson is a graduate of Ball State University, and she holds a certificate in investigative reporting from the Investigative Reporters and Editors organization. Before joining the Chronicle, Hodson spent six years at the Jackson, Tenn. Sun. Hodson received the prestigious Georgia Press Association Freedom of Information Award in 2015, and she has won press association awards for investigative reporting, non-deadline reporting, hard news reporting, public service and specialty reporting. In 2000, Hodson won the Georgia Bar Association’s Silver Gavel Award, and in 2001, she received Honorable Mention for the same award and is a fellow of the National Press Foundation and a graduate of the National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting boot camp.

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