Northampton man gets five years for wounding in Accomack

A Cape Charles man was sentenced to five years in prison Thursday in Accomack Circuit Court for the unlawful wounding of his former girlfriend last December

Retired Judge Les L. Lilley suspended all but a year and five months of the term for 53-year-old Michael Glenn Robinson, of Tyson Circle. The defendant has already served eight months.

Upon release, Robinson will be on supervised probation and good behavior for five years. Lilley said Robinson is “absolutely” prohibited from having contact with the victim, Hailey Custis, of Melfa. To do so, would be a violation of probation. The judge also issued a new two-year protection order.

“Your record indicates you are a danger to others,” the judge said. “Six assaults is staggering … you can be a useful law-abiding person, but at times in your life, you revert to a different person. Your anger gets the best of you.”

Lilley went above the guidelines, which called for Robinson to be sentenced to a term between a day and three months. The five-year stretch was requested by Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney William Fox.

“This man is absolutely a danger,” said Fox. “He has been given chance after chance … the buck has to stop somewhere … it has destroyed this poor woman …  He deserves every bit of that time. She’s very, very, lucky that this didn’t go any further.”

“I regret the whole thing,” said the defendant. Robinson said he went to her house to help her at her request. “I (also) went there to try and reconcile the relationship. My intention was never for her to get hurt. I have no desire to go back and be in any kind of relationship … I understand my past history was not that great. In the last 10 years, I have tried to correct my actions and my attitude.”

Defense lawyer Isabel Kaldenbach argued that Robinson was trying to keep Custis from hurting herself. Kaldenbach said there was no evidence at the trial of Custis getting kicked in the head or having clumps of hair pulled out as was mentioned in a letter submitted to the court. “I believe she was traumatized before the incident,” Kaldenbach continued, adding, that her client’s other convictions for assault were misdemeanors and were already litigated.

According to testimony at the trial, the two were getting ready for dinner at her house when they began to argue. Custis told authorities that Robinson got so upset he walked down the hall, smashed pictures, and knocked them off the wall. He eventually pushed her down, sat on her, punched her, choked her, and grabbed a pair of scissors. She was stabbed in the hand while trying to get away and shoved hard enough to create a hole in the wall. Custis said he also threatened to kill her.

“That night changed my life forever,” Custis wrote in a victim impact statement. She said she is always looking over her shoulder and sees vehicles that look like his.