Mason residents not guilty in pruning shears incident

Three Mason residents have been found not guilty of attacking a woman in their trailer and allegedly trying to cut her fingers off with pruning shears.

Gerald Moore Jr., 49, his daughter, Shena Moore, 24, and John Gulley, 31, Shena’s boyfriend, all of Reading Road, faced felonious assault and kidnapping charges stemming from a May 5 incident.

Following trial this week in Warren County Common Pleas Court, the father and daughter and the daughter’s boyfriend were found not guilty of all charges this afternoon, according to our news partners at WCPO.

Prosecutors contended Gulley was allegedly sending inappropriate text messages to the victim, Brittany Rager, and Moore invited her over to discuss the issue. When she arrived, the father allegedly hit her with a cane and the daughter started punching her. They eventually pinned her on the ground and tried to cut off her fingers with the pruning shears, according to the prosecution.

She was able to kick the father, who fell down, and when his daughter went to attend to him, the victim got up and Gulley allegedly “whacked” her in the head with the shears, leaving a gash.

Defense attorneys argued Rager could have run away, but didn’t because she came to the home looking for a fight, according to WCPO.

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