Choked guard: 'He's gonna kill me'

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) - A Kent County Jail deputy who was choked by an inmate in an attempted escape testified Thursday she felt that "he's gonna kill me."

The inmate, Willie Lee Wilson Williams, is facing several charge, the most serious of which is assault with attempt to murder. Williams was in court Thursday for his preliminary exam to determine if there was enough evidence to send the case to trial.

Around noon, the judge decided there was enough evidence, and the case moves forward.

On the stand, the deputy -- who is not being named by 24 Hour News 8, and whose face will not be shown by directive of the judge -- said she was alone in an area of the jail known as a Pod in mid-September. She had no way of calling for help after Williams allegedly knocked her radio from her.

Williams repeatedly choked her and dragged her along the floor, she said. When they reached a control area, the officer saw a lit button indicating the intercom system was active.

She yelled for help, she testified, then Williams began choking her again.

She felt "like no one was going to get there in time to help me," she said on the stand. "At that time, I really thought three times that he was going to keep choking me. He's gonna kill me."

The attack was stopped by other inmates who broke out of their cells when they saw the attack.

Williams was in jail since July 27 and is charged with three counts of armed robbery. He's accused of robbing three gas stations the day before, and was arrested after a two-hour standoff.