Muncie man found guilty in sword attack

MUNCIE – A Muncie man has been found guilty of two felony charges stemming from his attack — using a sword — on the manager of a local grocery store.

Delaware Circuit Court 1 Judge Marianne Vorhees this week found Johnny Junior Wesley, 63, guilty of battery with a deadly weapon, a Class C felony carrying a standard four-year prison term, and intimidation, a Class D felony with a standard 18-month sentence.

The judge had presided over a bench trial last Friday. She scheduled a sentencing hearing for May 13.

Wesley, then 61, was arrested in June 2013 after he was accused of attacking a manager at the Marsh Supermarket at 1920 S. Hoyt Ave., following a disagreement over the Muncie man's purchase of cigarettes.

On the witness stand last week, Wesley claimed he acted in self-defense after the store manager pulled two handguns on him, firing once. The accounts of other witnesses and store surveillance video reflected the manager was unarmed, however.

Wesley maintained he twice took guns — one of them equipped with a silencer, he said — away from his victim and removed ammunition, throwing ""shells all over the store," he said.

The manager was not cut with the sword, but the judge viewed photographs of a welt on the victim's leg administered with the weapon.

Wesley said he routinely went to the grocery store, and elsewhere, with a shopping cart he owns, bringing with him belongings including the sword, a cane and personal papers that included his birth certificate.

In 2007, the judge found Wesley not guilty by reason of insanity after he was charged with intimidation, criminal trespass and disorderly conduct.

In the more recent case, mental health professionals who examined Wesley said he understood the charges against him. Deputy Prosecutor Steve Sneed presented the state's case against Wesley, who was represented by attorney Mike Quirk.

Contact news reporter Douglas Walker at (765) 213-5851. You can also follow him on Twitter @DouglasWalkerSP.