A 35-year-old Rome man is facing simple battery and disorderly conduct charges after police say he grabbed a woman by the throat and shoved her through a business door on Maple Road. Trenton Tyrice Williamson was arrested following the incident, according to reports.
According to Coosa Valley News, Williamson grabbed the woman by the throat before shoving her through the door of a business on the Maple Road corridor. Police said Williamson committed the act in a violent and tumultuous manner, language that underpins the disorderly conduct charge alongside the simple battery count. Maple Road is a major commercial and residential corridor in Floyd County that links local service businesses and retail stores to nearby neighborhoods, according to WRGA News.
A Pattern of Recent Trouble With the Law
The Maple Road arrest was not Williamson's only recent brush with law enforcement in Floyd County. Less than two weeks earlier, on August 10, he was arrested for allegedly violating Georgia's Sex Offender Registry law and fleeing on foot from officers, according to Local News Now (WRGA AM). Arrest records cited by the station showed Williamson had failed to notify the Floyd County Sheriff's Office within 72 hours of moving from Mary Street to Shorter Avenue, and that he resisted arrest during the encounter.
That was not his first serious run-in with police, either. In January 2025, Williamson was arrested on Georgia Loop 1 at Garrison Road and charged with felony possession of a firearm by a convicted felon along with misdemeanor obstruction, after he allegedly refused to exit his vehicle or disclose his birthdate, per Q102 (WQTU FM). Floyd County Jail records cited by that station confirmed a firearm was recovered following the traffic stop.
A 2010 Guilty Plea Tied to a Fatal Shooting
Williamson's felony record dates back further still. In June 2010, he pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of conspiracy to commit robbery in connection with the May 2009 fatal shooting of a 19-year-old in Cedartown, Georgia, according to WGAA Radio. He was one of four co-defendants in that homicide case and received a recommended 10-year sentence, with three years to serve in a bootcamp-type facility, the outlet reported at the time.
Why Simple Battery Instead of a Felony Charge
Police reports describing a suspect grabbing a victim by the throat can raise the question of why the charge filed was misdemeanor simple battery rather than felony aggravated assault. Under Georgia Code § 16-5-21, choking someone can be elevated to felony aggravated assault, carrying a prison sentence of one to 20 years, if prosecutors determine the act was likely to result in strangulation, according to The Law Offices of M. Ballard Mitchell.
Simple battery, by contrast, is classified under Georgia Code § 16-5-23 as a misdemeanor punishable by up to 12 months in jail and a fine of up to $1,000 when physical contact of an insulting or provoking nature is committed intentionally without causing serious bodily harm, per Kevin R. Fisher. Disorderly conduct, meanwhile, is defined under Georgia Code § 16-11-39 as acting in a violent or tumultuous manner toward another person in a way that places them in reasonable fear for their life, limb, or safety, according to Justia Law. It remains an open question whether prosecutors will consider upgrading the charges once the case is formally filed, and the exact relationship between Williamson and the victim has not been disclosed.
Part of a Wider Pattern in Floyd County
Williamson's arrest came just a day after a separate case made headlines in Rome, where a 66-year-old man was accused of throwing a disabled woman against a door at a senior housing complex, with police documenting visible bruising on the victim's arm. Floyd County Jail records also show that on August 9, a 77-year-old man was booked on felony aggravated assault and battery charges in Rome after allegedly slapping a woman and choking her by the neck, leaving red marks on her neck and hands, according to the same Local News Now report on Williamson's registry arrest.
Misdemeanor charges such as simple battery and disorderly conduct in Floyd County are typically prosecuted through the Solicitor-General's or District Attorney's office, where convicted defendants can face probation, anger management courses, or community service alongside any jail time, according to the George McCranie Law Firm. Judges also weigh a defendant's prior criminal record when handing down final misdemeanor sentences, the firm notes. Williamson's current bail or probation status following his August 10 registry arrest has not been made public.
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