Children’s 911 call helps lead to conviction in Warner Robins attack

Prosecutors say the victim’s 12-year-old son called 911 after being awakened by the defendant’s 7-year-old son during the attack.

PERRY, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) — A Warner Robins man was sentenced to 30 years after a Houston County jury convicted him in a family violence attack witnessed by two children, according to the Houston County District Attorney’s Office.

The DA’s office says 45-year-old George Owens Kinsler was convicted Tuesday of aggravated battery, aggravated assault, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and related misdemeanor charges.

Judge Amy E. Smith sentenced Kinsler to 30 years, with the first 15 years to be served in prison. The court also banished Kinsler from Houston County and all contiguous counties for the length of his sentence, according to the DA’s office.

Prosecutors say the attack happened in the early morning hours of November 29, 2024, after the victim returned to her home on Randolph Avenue in Warner Robins.

According to the DA’s office, Kinsler was waiting inside the victim’s bedroom closet when she got there. Prosecutors say he attacked her, striking her in the face while carrying a handgun.

The DA’s office says the victim was bleeding from the face and coughing up blood when an ambulance arrived.

Prosecutors say the attack was witnessed by Kinsler’s then-7-year-old son and the victim’s then-12-year-old son. The 7-year-old woke the older child, who called 911.

Warner Robins police responded and took Kinsler into custody. Prosecutors say officers found a handgun hidden in the closet where Kinsler had been hiding.

The DA’s office says the victim later recanted her original account and testified at trial that she was injured by falling into a chair multiple times. Prosecutors say both children testified during the trial.

“This case is a powerful reminder that family violence thrives in silence and behind closed doors, often in front of the very children who suffer from it the most,” District Attorney Eric Edwards said. “What this defendant did to the victim was brutal enough on its own, but what stands out most to me is the courage shown by these two young boys. A seven-year-old child recognized that his mother was in danger, woke his older brother for help, and that twelve-year-old had the presence of mind and bravery to call 911. Their actions very likely saved their mother’s life that night.”