Court date for man accused of beating ex-wife into coma pushed back

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - A man accused of beating his wife into a coma, is sitting in jail as his case plays out in court.

But that wasn’t the case for Michael Damar Williams just a month ago.

Williams was originally arrested and accused by police of the brutal beating of Monique Williams, his ex-wife.

He was in jail until March 27 when he was released because the time limit for the Chatham County District Attorney’s Office to bring the case to a grand jury expired.

Under Georgia law, if someone has not been indicted within 90 days of being arrested, they are allowed to bond out of jail.

WTOC spoke to Monique Williams about the situation back then, and two days after we asked the DA’s office for comment about what happened, Williams was indicted and eventually re-arrested.

He’s in court for an arraignment Wednesday, but that has been pushed back due to scheduling conflicts with his new lawyer.

Still, Williams will likely stay behind bars for the duration of the case, unless the juge rules otherwise.

After being released from jail, Michael Damar Williams was indicted on 11 counts, including aggravated assault, aggravated battery, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, and terroristic acts.

When WTOC spoke to Monique Williams, Michael Williams was out of jail, and she said she was terrified for her life.

Now, she sat before us wearing a Domestic Violence Awareness ribbon, saying she felt some comfort that her ex-husband is behind bars.

“I felt safer. But it was still like, it takes work. It literally takes footwork for the victim to get justice,” Monique Williams said.

But it’s a fight, she says, she’s not willing to give up. Since she was beaten so badly she went into a coma in December, things have been an uphill battle.

She’s been in trauma therapy and getting rehab for a finger injury.

“Like if I hit it, oh, it hurts.”

She also said she made the decision to shave her head, partly because it wasn’t growing back all the way due to staples that had been in her head, but also because:

“This is the same hair that that dude was gripping and bashing my head in with the Chopper. So I was like, you know, let me just cut this. Let me just get rid of this heavy wait, physically, mentally, emotionally.”

It’s not just her own trauma she says she has to worry about.

Williams says her three children have suffered just as much as her, ever since she went to the hospital. She says she’s witnessed their trauma, including mental health struggles with her son.

“Screaming, yelling, crying. He’s like, ‘Mom, I didn’t know if you were dead.’”

Williams says there was another moment of fear last week when Williams petitioned for bond again, but that bond ended up being denied, the judge citing “significant risk to the alleged victims.”

The road towards healing for the Williams family will be a long one.

But Monique says she’s willing to turn her situation into a positive one and plans on starting an organization for survivors of domestic violence.

She says there is some peace of mind knowing her ex-husband is in jail, which she believes is one of the many steps towards justice in this case.

“I’m not perfect. I’m not a saint. But I know I’m going to do my very best to advocate and just fight. And I know for a fact that this is going in my favor. I know for a fact... yeah. It’s all gonna work out. I know it.”

Again, Williams was due to be arraigned Wednesday but that’s been pushed back due to some scheduling conflicts.

We will keep you updated as the case progresses.

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