MADISON TOWNSHIP — A 40-year-old McElroy Road man was arrested Sunday on rape and felonious assault charges, according to the Richland County Sheriff’s Department.
Bond was set at $1 million cash for William Odel Smith on Monday morning during his initial appearance in Mansfield Municipal Court.
He was also ordered to wear electronic monitoring if he is released from the Richland County Jail and to have no contact with the alleged victim in the case. A preliminary hearing is scheduled Thursday at 1 p.m., according to court online records.
Smith was out on probation from Richland County Common Pleas Court for a 2022 drug possession conviction and has now also been charged with a probation violation. The rape charge is a 1st-degree felony and felonious assault is a 2nd-degree felony.
Deputies were called to Avita Ontario Hospital on Saturday at 5:09 p.m. regarding a woman who been brought into the emergency room “with severe bruises like someone had beaten her,” according to the narrative written by Deputy Bryce Burgess.
Medical staff members told deputies the woman had been beaten, her eyes were swollen shut, had bruises behind her ears and bleeding from her ears.
She also had bruises on her inner thighs “that doctor believes could mean (the victim) was raped (along with) bruising and swelling on the neck where someone had strangled her,” according to the narrative.
Deputies took photos of the victim’s injuries as evidence.
Richland Source is avoiding specific details from the narrative in an attempt to protect the identity of the victim.
The victim was transported to OhioHealth Mansfield Hospital due to the severity of her injuries, according to the narrative.
Deputies executed a search warrant for the residence and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation processed the scene, according to Maj. Joe Masi.
Masi said Smith was arrested shortly after deputies started their investigation.
This case is still under investigation, according to Masi.