Man sentenced for violent rampage called ‘the face of methamphetamine’ by judge
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IDAHO FALLS — A judge likened the crimes of a local man to a horror movie before sentencing him to prison for up to 25 years.
Dustin Dakota Williams, 24, was sentenced Monday for attacking several people during a violent rampage that included beating a 72-year-old woman with a brick on Nov. 29, 2018. He was given seven years fixed with eight years indeterminate for a first count of felony aggravated battery and 10 years indeterminate for a second count with no fixed time. District Judge Dane Watkins ordered the sentences run consecutively.
“The facts, in this case, appear to come out of a horror movie. And yet, these are real lives, real injuries, real fear that can’t be erased,” Watkins said during Monday’s sentencing hearing.
The 72-year-old victim, who Williams attacked with a brick, was one of two victims who spoke during the court proceeding. She told the court she struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder and lingering effects of the concussion she suffered during the attack.
“Without any provocation, I was chased from my home and severely beaten,” she said in her victim impact statement. “Terrified that someone was entering my home, I ran out the front door towards my neighbor across the street.”
She said she made it to their front porch before Williams landed his first blow with a brick to the back of her head.
“After I fell, the blows continued. I was beaten again and again,” she said.
In his victim impact statement, the man who Williams attacked in WinCo after beating his first victim said he saw Williams yelling that he needed help and that he’d been poisoned. That’s when Williams attacked him, punching him multiple times, cutting his cheek.
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He said he has not suffered lasting effects from the attack but has had multiple doctor visits to make sure Williams did not infect him with any kind of blood-born illness due to the fact that his knuckles were bleeding when he punched the victim in the face.
The victim and several bystanders in WinCo helped restrain Williams until police arrived and took him into custody.
“I was then sent to (Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center) and had to get two hepatitis B boosters. One in each hip. I was then informed that I would have to go in every three months to have a blood test to make sure I didn’t contract anything from the blood contact,” he said.
Between attacking his first victim with a brick on Tendoy Drive and finally being subdued in WinCo, Williams went on what can only be described as a rampage.
Police reports show Williams fled after attacking the first woman and stole a boat oar from a nearby home. Using the oar, he broke the front window of another home and the mirrors on several vehicles located at the residence. When the owner came to see what was happening, Williams attacked her wielding the oar and struck three to four times, breaking the oar. Williams dropped the oar and fled again.
Williams also threw a cement planter through a kitchen window of another home. The vandalism startled the occupants but did not hurt anyone.
Upon arriving at WinCo, Williams damaged several vehicles with rocks before entering the store and fighting with the employee.
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Williams was initially charged with two counts of felony aggravated battery, five counts of misdemeanor injury to property, petit theft and misdemeanor battery. Two counts of felony injury to a jail were added after he kicked out the windows of two police vehicles following his arrest.
As part of a plea agreement, Williams pleaded guilty to the two counts of felony aggravated battery and the misdemeanor battery charges. The prosecution agreed to drop all other charges.
Williams’ public defender, Neal Randall, requested he be placed on a rider — a year-long program focused on rehabilitation where the judge can decide if the offender should be placed on probation or sent back to prison at the end of the program.
“Unfortunately, through his own decisions, he’s placed himself in a position where he suffers from psychosis,” Randall said. “He just does not remember anything that happened because of his prolonged meth use and the fact that he’s been using drugs.”
Watkins denied the request for a rider.
Williams has an extensive criminal record dating back to when he was a juvenile and spanning multiple counties. Many of the past charges against him are drug and alcohol-related.
“Mr. Williams, because of your actions, you changed the lives of so many,” Watkins said. “This court, every week, has individuals coming before his honor on substance abuse cases and it is my wish that all of those individuals and the community as a whole could see that this offense is the face of methamphetamine.”
In his statements, Williams apologized to his victims.
“Never in my life have I gotten in trouble or done anything where I’ve thought about the people that I’ve affected and how that impacts their lives. I’ve sat and prayed and thought about that a lot this time and it’s heavy on my heart and on my mind what happened that day,” Williams said.