CAYCE, S.C. — A woman will spend the next 25 years of her life in prison after pleading guilty to nearly murdering a relative with a hammer.
The 11th Circuit Solicitor's Office said that 36-year-old Amy Lynn Wright pleaded guilty to attempted murder for what she did to her 64-year-old victim.
The incident happened on Aug. 18, 2020, on Oakland Avenue. Around 9:30 a.m., officers arrived to find the woman who had been attacked sitting on her own couch covered in blood, bruises, and cuts about her head, face, and one hand.
Prosecutors said a pool of blood had gathered on the ground alongside a hammer. It was the victim's granddaughter who first realized something was wrong when she heard her calling for help.
The investigation uncovered that Wright had attacked the victim with the hammer as she sat on the couch unarmed. The reason for the attack, Wright later explained, was because of how the victim spoke to Wright's children, telling them "not to touch things and not to run around the home."
Family members had explained to investigators that Wright had been staying with the victim, whom she was related to by marriage, for about two weeks. Wright had her children with her at the time and, according to prosecutors, had nowhere else to go.
When speaking with investigators, Wright allegedly told investigators that she didn't know how many times she struck the victim. However, graphic details provided by the solicitor's office suggested it was enough to put the victim in the hospital for two months, during which she was treated for skull fractures, brain bleeding, and swelling. She also had an eye sewn shut due to orbital socket damage and had to have her right index finger amputated.
Despite having little brain activity at one point, the victim did survive the ordeal but prosecutors said her life was changed forever.
Meanwhile, an investigating officer who took the stand during the sentencing phase said Wright has never shown remorse for her actions that morning.
Due to the nature of the crime, Wright will not be eligible for parole. The 25-year sentence is only five years short of the maximum sentence the attempted murder charge could carry under South Carolina law.
