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Juan Rodriguez-Menier, of Holyoke, was found guilty on two counts of armed assault with a dangerous weapon resulting in serious bodily injury last month in the July 2021 attack, the Hampden County District Attorney's Office said. A judge on Wednesday sentenced Rodriguez-Menier to five to six-and-a-half years in prison.
Rodriguez-Menier was accused of attacking a motorist at "the X" at Sumner and Belmont avenues in the Forest Park neighborhood of Springfield. Police said a group of dirt bike riders cut off the driver, which caused a slight collision between one of the bikes and the car.
No one was injured, but it sparked a shouting match that escalated to Rodriguez-Menier removing his helmet and beating the driver with it, prosecutors said. The then 38-year-old driver was rushed to the hospital in critical condition and nearly died from his wounds, police said.
He still suffers "significant, life-altering adverse effects as a result of the beating," the prosecutor's office said in a news release.
Prosecutors requested Rodriguez-Menier receive a 12 to 15-year sentence for the vicious attack.
Rodriguez-Menier's legal troubles aren't over, however. He has a pending firearms case, the district attorney's office said. He'll return to court in June.
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