A 30-year-old Atlanta woman is facing criminal charges after allegedly smashing a computer monitor over another woman’s head inside a Rome addiction treatment facility. Sommer Alexis McIntosh was arrested after the alleged attack, which happened at Southeast Detox Center on Martha Berry Highway, a corridor that sits roughly 66 miles northwest of Atlanta.
According to Coosa Valley News, McIntosh allegedly smashed the monitor over the head of a 49-year-old woman at the facility. Reports indicate she also threw items off the victim’s desk in an aggressive manner during the same encounter. McIntosh was subsequently arrested in Rome and now faces charges of simple battery and simple assault.
What Georgia Law Says About the Charges
The battery charge stems from Georgia’s simple battery statute, O.C.G.A. § 16-5-23, which defines the offense as intentionally making physical contact of an insulting or provoking nature with another person, or intentionally causing physical harm, according to Kohn & Yager LLC. Notably, the law does not require visible or permanent bodily injury to sustain a conviction. The separate simple assault charge, tied to the alleged desk-clearing, is grounded in O.C.G.A. § 16-5-20, which covers acts that place another person in reasonable apprehension of immediately receiving violent injury — meaning physical contact isn’t even required to establish that offense, per Slider Law.
Both charges are classified as misdemeanors under Georgia law, each carrying a maximum penalty of up to 12 months in county jail and a $1,000 fine. Georgia courts often substitute probation, community service, or counseling for active jail time in first-offense misdemeanor cases, the same source notes.
Why Not a Felony Charge?
Striking someone with a rigid object like a computer monitor can, in some circumstances, cross into felony territory. Georgia’s aggravated assault statute, O.C.G.A. § 16-5-21, applies when there’s proof of intent to murder, rob, or rape, or when a deadly weapon likely to inflict serious bodily harm is used, according to Bixon Law. That distinction explains why responding officers filed misdemeanor charges rather than the felony version, which can carry a state prison sentence of 1 to 20 years upon conviction…