May 12, 2008
Trial begins for sisters charged with assault
The trial of two teenage Edgewood sisters accused of attempted murder in a melee involving bats and knives that left a man paralyzed began yesterday in Harford County Circuit Court.
The sisters, Tommyrre Ellysse Reid, 16, and Layelle Shalae Reid, 15, who are being tried as adults, face 18 charges each, including attempted murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, assault and disorderly conduct.
Their defense attorneys said the sisters are innocent and placed blame for the attack on their mother, Celestine Huff.
Three people were hospitalized and several vehicles were damaged during the Nov. 25 incident, police said.
The melee, which involved a large crowd in the 1900 block of Eloise Lane in Edgewood, occurred because of a woman's relationship with a male neighbor, police said.
During the incident, resident Gregory Simmons was stabbed in the back twice, with one of the wounds severing his spinal cord, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down, according to testimony yesterday. Police said that Simmons was attacked when he told the group gathering on his property to leave.
Sherrie Simmons testified that the two teenagers repeatedly kicked and punched her husband in the altercation.
Huff, 37, faces 19 charges, including attempted first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and several counts of assault. He is to be tried at a later date.
The Harford County Sheriffs Department arrested eight people in connection with the incident. A warrant also has been issued for Otis Huff, Celestine Huff's son.
Copyright © 2008, The Baltimore Sun
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