Cornish
Larry Cornish, 32, of Columbia, was found guilty of the attempted murder of Ashley Mickle on Thursday, Aug. 31, following a three-day trial in the Sixth Judicial Circuit Court in Winnsboro with Judge Daniel Hall presiding.
Cornish was also convicted of possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime and possession of a weapon by a person previously convicted of a violent crime.
Mickle testified that in the early morning hours of July 27, 2016, after an argument with Cornish, she attempted to flee from the couple’s Winnsboro apartment with her two children. Before Mickle and her children were able to drive away, according to Assistant Solicitor Croom Hunter, Cornish jumped in her car with a pistol and held it to her head. Cornish forced Mickle to drive away from the apartment complex and proceeded approximately half a mile to the intersection of Calhoun Street and Highway 321 in Winnsboro.
As Mickle came to a stop, Cornish exited the vehicle, turned towards Mickle, and according to Hunter, fired his pistol at her head. Mickle was struck in the cheek but was able to drive to the emergency room at Fairfield Memorial Hospital, where she was treated for her wounds. Mickle’s two children, ages 6 and 9 at the time of the shooting, witnessed the event from the backseat of the car and testified at trial.
Law enforcement began a search for Cornish the same day. He was later arrested in Columbia by members of the Richland County Sheriff’s Office, the SLED Fugitive Task Force and the Winnsboro Department of Public Safety.
Cornish was sentenced to a combined 40-year sentence. He received thirty years imprisonment for attempted murder and five years on each weapons charge, to be run consecutive.
Cornish was represented by Aimee Zmroczek of Columbia.
