Hawkins pleads guilty to three felonies

Scott Hawkins, 52, has pleaded guilty to three felonies that he was charged with earlier this year, Franklin County District Attorney Joey Rushing said.

Hawkins pleaded Sept. 8 and received a 30-year sentence for two counts of burglary and one count of attempted assault, according to Rushing.

According to police reports, Hawkins was arrested March 26 after a victim came home and found her house being burglarized. She attempted to block him in with her vehicle, and then he proceeded to ram his vehicle into hers, which Rushing said is where the attempted assault charge comes from.

Russellville PD was able to catch Hawkins the next day after a high-speed car chase that turned into a foot chase when Hawkins wrecked his vehicle in downtown Russellville, Rushing said.

“We’re glad that the county is a little bit safer now with Hawkins behind bars,” he said.

This wasn’t Hawkins’ first run-in with the law, according to Rushing. Hawkins had at least three prior felony convictions, two of which were in Alabama in 2013, and more than 20 pending cases of felonies and misdemeanors at the time he made his plea agreement.

Originally Hawkins was offered a plea agreement Sept. 6, but he rejected it before changing his mind Sept. 8, Rushing said. Because of this and his prior record, Hawkins won’t be eligible for good time or for an appeal bond.

“He maxed out with the Habitual Offender Act, and it increased his penalty range,” Rushing explained.

Hawkins’ case moved through the system quickly, but Rushing said his office made sure the victims were satisfied with the settlement.

“We believe that this is a proper punishment, especially given his prior record and the threat he posed to the community,” Rushing said.