Wayne – A Cabell County man will serve at least the next two years in prison for his attack on a Huntington attorney last year.
Special Cabell Circuit Judge Jason Fry on Monday sentenced Charles Bryan Bolling,41, to 2-10 years in prison for brutalizing Daniel T. Yon on April 28, 2022. In September, a Cabell County grand jury indicted Bolling on a single county of malicious assault, accusing him of intending to “maim, disfigure, disable or kill,” Yon as he was walking from his car into the main entrance of the Bailes, Craig, Yon and Sellards law firm on 10th St. in Huntington.
A nearby security camera that captured footage of the attack shows Bolling smoking a cigarette approaching Yon as he steps onto the street while talking on his cell phone. After appearing to say something to Yon, Bolling then punches Yon several times knocking his cell phone free, followed by a knee to the face and several more punches that caused Yon to fall to the curb against a nearby car.
As he lay on the ground, the footage shows Bolling kick Yon in the head four times. Afte appearing to say something to Yon while still on the ground, Bolling walks away.
In March, Bolling entered a Kennedy plea to the charge where the Cabell County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office agreed to take no position on sentencing. In a Kennedy plea, a defendant does not admit guilt, but concedes the state has sufficient evidence to sustain a conviction.
During the nearly 2 ½ hour hearing, A. Courteney Craig, Bolling’s attorney, made an impassioned plea for Fry not to sentence to Bolling to prison, but consider an alternative based upon Yon’s history of instigating fights with people, then later filing criminal charges or civil suits.
After Fry entered his motion filed Friday to withdraw the March 30 plea, Craig called Yon’s ex-wife Anne to testify about his alleged history of violence.
In her testimony, Anne,41, recalled one incident in August 2021 that served as the impetus for her ultimately filing for divorce from Yon. She claimed he became so enraged at their daughter’s use of an iPad that he took the hinges off her bedroom door.
After putting him in a headlock to halt his assault, Anne said Yon later called the police. However, no charges were filed.
According to Anne, after she and Bolling began a relationship, had a child together and later married, Yon attempted to manipulate their girls into believing Bryan was a “deadbeat,” “druggie” and “pedo[phile].” Also, she claims despite active domestic violence protective, Yon has continued a campaign of harassment against she and Bryan by bombarding her with oftentimes “hundreds” of text messages “to this day.”
Citing how much of what Anne Bolling recounted in her testimony wasn’t known, and could’ve been used at trial, and Bryan entered his plea willingly, Fry denied Craig’s motion to withdraw the plea.
Prior to imposition of sentence, Bryan made a brief statement to the court. In it, he said the nine seconds he took to beat Yon “is disturbing to me now,” and asked the court to “Punish me, and not the children.”
Later, Yon,57, gave a victim impact statement. In a low and barely discernable voice, Yon recounted the severity of the injuries Bolling inflicted on him, and rebutted the defense’s claim the attack was happenstance saying the people who run the tobacco shop where Bolling was prior to it never saw him before or since.
Immediately upon Fry announcing his sentence, Craig asked him to consider allowing Bolling to post bond to remain free pending appeal. Despite Assistant Cabell Prosecutor Tyler Schoub voicing no objections, Fry denied the motion fearing Bolling might engage in other another attack.
“I feel he’d be more dangerous knowing what his sentence is,” Fry said in concluding the hearing.
Afterwards, Bolling was taken into custody by Wayne County Sheriff’s deputies and taken to the Western Regional Jail in Barboursville to await placement by the Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
