Last defendant sentenced to 12 years in prison for 2022 off-duty attack on Lawrence police officer | News, Sports, Jobs

photo by: Mugshot courtesy of Douglas County Sheriff's Office

Zachary Taylor Maddux is pictured with the Douglas County Justice and Law Enforcement Center.

A Lawrence man was sentenced Friday to 12 years in prison for hitting an off-duty police officer with a tire iron in 2022. He is the fifth and final defendant to be sentenced in the case.

The man, Zachary Taylor Maddux, 20, of Lawrence, pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated battery in July as part of a plea deal that reduced his original charge to attempted first-degree murder, the Journal-World reported.

The charge stems from an incident that occurred in the early morning hours of Nov. 4, 2022, when Maddux and four other men chased and attacked off-duty Lawrence police officer Austin Corbitt near the intersection of Bob Billings Parkway and George Williams Way. Maddux turned 20 on Friday, the day Judge Stacey Donovan sentenced him to 144 months, or 12 years, in prison. Maddux will also have to register as a violent offender after his release for 15 years. Court records indicate that Donovan gave Maddux a slight variance from what Kansas sentencing guidelines had recommended. Given Maddux’s criminal record, state law prescribed a standard sentence of 162 months, or 13.5 years.

His attorney, Michael Clarke, had asked the court to sentence Maddux to 144 months in prison given his young age and difficult childhood, according to court documents. The state agreed to support the lighter sentence, according to the plea agreement. Maddux has nine felony convictions on his record, including multiple counts of aggravated battery, armed robbery, theft and obstructing law enforcement, according to court documents.

Maddux has spent nearly 22 months in prison since his arrest on the day of the incident, and he is eligible for 15 percent credit for good behavior, which could reduce his sentence by about 21.6 months if he behaves well in prison.

Maddux and his four co-defendants, who were riding in the same vehicle, were arrested shortly after the incident. Maddux was named by his co-defendant, Xaviar Dean Anderson, 21, of Pomona, as the instigator of the attack. Anderson said Maddux wanted to attack or rob pedestrians as the group of men drove through Lawrence, the Journal-World reported.

After the group of men identified Corbitt as the target, the driver, Jackson Eugene Brouhard, 21, stopped the vehicle as Maddux, armed with a tire iron, and then Davin Kerr, 17, approached Corbitt on the sidewalk. Corbitt and Maddux exchanged blows, and as Corbitt tried to flee the men, Maddux struck Corbitt with the tire iron.

Maddux and Kerr got back in the vehicle and chased Corbitt, but Corbitt ducked under a nearby bridge. While the men searched for Corbitt, Addison Jon Leo Giullian, 20, of Lawrence, fired two shots out the window of the vehicle to scare Corbitt. Corbitt called 911 and hid until police arrived.

photo by: Douglas County Sheriff's Office

Pictured from left to right: Jackson Eugene Brouhard, Addison Jon Leo Giullian and Xaviar Dean Anderson. Davin Kerr is not pictured.

Co-accused's pleas

Brouhard pleaded guilty in February 2023 to one count of aggravated battery by reckless abandonment and was sentenced to three years of probation with an underlying sentence of 34 months in prison.

Giullian pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in March 2023 and was sentenced to 11 months in prison in May.

Kerr, 18, pleaded no contest to one count of aggravated battery in March 2023 and was sentenced to nine months of probation.

Anderson pleaded guilty in September 2023 to one count of conspiracy to commit aggravated assault and one count of aggravated intimidation of a victim, both felonies. He was sentenced to 38 months in prison, but that sentence was suspended to two years of probation under state law.