Rothwell Jacob Simmons, 27, was sentenced for two counts of assault by strangulation and two counts of assault with a deadly weapon with the intent to kill inflicting serious injury.
He received a minimum of 58 months and a maximum of 82 months in prison for the two counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury, court records show.
For the assault by strangulation charges, Mr. Simmons received a suspended sentence of five to 15 months, with two years of supervised probation, to follow his sentence for the other two counts, according to the Wilmington StarNews.
The sentencing comes three years after Mr. Simmons was arrested Jan. 18, 2022, in connection with the attack and injury of two New Hanover Regional employees inside the hospital’s emergency department.
Winston-Salem, N.C.-based Novant Health, which acquired New Hanover Regional in February 2021, confirmed in a statement shared with Becker’s at the time that the two employees were injured. The health system did not identify the individuals involved, citing privacy laws, and deferred to New Hanover County for further information.
“Our hospital experienced something that tragically is happening in hospitals across the country at unprecedented rates — acts of violence directed toward healthcare workers,” the statement said. “Two of our team members were attacked and injured inside the emergency department. Our hearts and prayers go out to them and their families.”
Becker’s reached out to Novant for comment about the sentencing and will update this story if one is received.
In addition to the sentencing, the court recommended “any available mental health treatment or educational services through (Department of Adult Corrections),” according to the StarNews, which cited the judgment.
Mr. Simmons was credited 1,147 days for time served pretrial.
The district attorney dismissed an additional attempted murder charge without leave as part of a plea agreement, according to the StarNews.