Deputies accused William Brent Parham of approaching a group of young people who had previously attended a church youth function and threatening them with a handgun.
The defendant was 52 at the time of the incident.
Parham was injured when the father of one of the victims came to the aid of the young people after hearing their screams for help.
The accused assailant was rushed to Christus Spohn Hospital Beeville and later transferred to Christus Spohn Memorial Hospital in Corpus Christi where he later underwent surgery for head injuries.
Parham was indicted on five counts of aggravated assault, threat, with a deadly weapon. The offense is a state jail felony.
If Parham is convicted, he could be sentenced to anywhere from six months to two years in a state jail facility and fined as much as $10,000.
At the time of the incident, Deputy Investigator Steve Martin said Parham had experienced medical problems and could have been taking medication that might have led to the incident.
Martin said a group of teen-agers ranging in age from 14 to 16 were among the victims. A 19-year-old youth director from the First United Methodist Church was with the group as they built a campfire near a fence line on the property where they were guests.
Witnesses said later that the gathering was not a church function but an informal event following a youth meeting.
According to Martin’s report of the incident, Parham approached the fence line from neighboring property, crossed the fence and threatened the group with a gun.
In the wording of the indictment, prosecutors alleged that Parham said, “I’ll kill you. Don’t move! I will kill you.”
In the initial report Martin said Parham allegedly shouted “Sit down and shut up or I’m going to kill you.”
The teens were able to run from the man but the 40-year-old owner of the property where the young people were gathered approached the man. The assailant then held him at gun point, according to investigators.
Martin said Parham ordered the man onto the ground on his stomach, placed the muzzle of semi-automatic handgun to the back of the man’s head and apparently cocked the hammer.
“He (the property owner) decided to fight,” Martin was quoted as saying after the incident. “He turned over, grabbed the man’s gun and forced it from his hand.”
The victim tried to defend himself from the attacker and struck Parham several times until the assailant quit struggling. Martin said at the time that Parham suffered serious injuries to his head and face.
“We know what happened,” Martin said at the time. “We just don’t know why it happened.”
District Judge Joel Johnson set Parham’s bond on the indictment at $20,000.
The defendant already had been released on Dec. 10, 2008 on a $150,000 personal recognizance bond set by Justice of the Peace Joe Lyvers.
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