OXFORD – More than a year after two women vandalized the fountain at a brand new park, one of the Ole Miss students responsible has paid in full the restitution owed to the city of Oxford.
Madison Brown, 19, of Davidson, North Carolina, submitted a $1,000 online payment to the Lafayette County Circuit Clerk’s office on December 9. According to court documents, that will pay Brown’s half of the restitution for damages caused when she and Abigail Fuqua, 20, of Virginia Beach, Virginia; destroyed the water feature in a pocket park on the square in central Oxford.
The out-of-state female University of Mississippi students were arrested several days after the early morning incident and later charged with criminal mischief. They faced up to 10 years in prison for vandalizing the $5,000 fountain less than a week after it opened.
Instead, they avoided jail time by participating in the pretrial intervention program this spring. They agreed to pay more than $5,100 in restitution to the city of Oxford and nearly $2,500 in fines, fees and court costs. Fuqua made two payments in April but still owes a total of about $750, including about $150 for restitution.
The $5,000 fountain was in a nearly $1 million park next to Oxford City Hall. Just five days after the park was dedicated, a security camera next to the fountain captured video of two women pushing the fountain’s large marble ball around 1 a.m. on Tuesday, October 24, 2023.
Oxford police released the video and enlarged still images of the women on social media the same day. By 1 p.m. that day, officials said a barrage of shares and tips led to the identification of the suspects. Fuqua was detained the day of the incident. Brown was arrested a week later.
Reimbursing the cost of the damage is only part of their diversionary strategy. The two women are not allowed to break any laws and must refrain from ‘excessive alcohol consumption’. If either fails to complete the Pretrial Intervention Program, their case will be placed back on the court docket for prosecution.
