Smithfield woman sentenced in shooting
A Smithfield woman convicted of shooting her mother and pistol-whipping the owner of a mobile home park was sentenced to up to 20 years behind bars Tuesday in Fayette County Court.
Earlier this month, Rachael Rhome, 26, was convicted of two counts each of aggravated assault and simple assault for the incident on July 4, 2010, at Strickland Estates in Georges Township. She shot her mother, Angela Baker, in the lower back, and when Tina Strickland showed up to see what was happening, Rhome used the same handgun to hit her in the face.
Judge Nancy D. Vernon sentenced Rhome to two terms of five to 10 years for the aggravated assault counts that related to both Baker and Strickland, and ran the sentences consecutively.
“It’s very fortunate that the gunshot that struck your mother did not kill her or you’d be facing much more serious charges,” Vernon told Rhome.
According to trial testimony, Baker went to see her daughter at the mobile home of William Scott, and Baker and Rhome got into an argument. As she turned to leave the mobile home, Baker told jurors she was shot. While neither Baker nor Scott testified that they saw Rhome with a gun, after Baker was shot, Rhome pointed the weapon at her mother, threatened to shoot her again and refused to let her leave to get help.
Baker was able to get away when Strickland came to see what was happening, and Rhome assaulted her. Baker testified she had to walk about 150 yards, bleeding, to the mobile home of her niece for help.
Strickland told jurors that she had a black eye from being hit with the gun.
In addition to the sentence, Vernon ordered Rhome to stay away from both victims during the course of parole. She also was ordered to make $4,387 in restitution to Baker and $17,289 to the Victims’ Compensation Assistance Program.