A North Prairie man is accused of turning a Mukwonago shopping center parking lot into a crime scene on Monday, after police say he intentionally ran down a co-worker with his car and left the victim fighting for his life with a serious brain injury.
Mukwonago police responded to the Greenridge Center around 4:45 p.m. and found the injured man in the lot. Emergency crews rushed him to Froedtert Hospital, where medical staff said he was in critical condition. The driver, identified as 38-year-old Lenard Hale, is now facing charges that include attempted first-degree intentional homicide and hit-and-run causing great bodily harm, as reported by FOX 6 Now.
According to the criminal complaint, surveillance video shows a white car slowly trailing the victim through the lot before suddenly accelerating and striking him, sending the man over the hood and roof of the vehicle. An Aptar shift supervisor told investigators he recognized the car as belonging to an employee who had been terminated earlier that day. Officers said they traced the vehicle registration to a residence and found a white car with numerous dents and a cracked windshield that matched what appeared on the video. When police made contact at the home, they reported finding Hale hiding behind a door with the vehicle’s key fob in his hand, as detailed by FOX6 Now.
Arrest and booking
Officers later located and arrested the 38-year-old in Milwaukee and booked him into the Waukesha County Jail, according to TMJ4. The station reports he was being held on an attempted first-degree intentional homicide count while investigators continue to work the case.
Court dates and bond
Hale made his first court appearance in Waukesha County yesterday. A court commissioner set his cash bond at $750,000, and he is scheduled to return for a preliminary hearing on Friday next week, according to FOX6 News Milwaukee. Court records cited in the station’s report list charges that include attempted first-degree intentional homicide and hit-and-run causing great bodily harm.
Victim hospitalized
The Mukwonago Fire Department treated the victim at the scene before he was transported to Froedtert, where he remained in critical condition, TMJ4 reports. Police told the station the suspect and victim knew each other, and said detectives are reviewing surveillance video and witness statements as the investigation continues.
What the charge means
The attempted first-degree intentional homicide charge accuses Hale of taking substantial steps toward killing another person. Wisconsin defines first-degree intentional homicide in Wis. Stat. § 940.01, and attempts are prosecuted under the state’s general attempt rules, which can translate into decades-long prison exposure within the felony classification system, according to the Wisconsin State Law Library. Charging documents are only allegations, and Hale is presumed innocent unless and until he is proven guilty in court.
Police say the investigation remains active and that no additional details have been released. Hale’s preliminary hearing on Friday next week is the next scheduled public court date in the case.
