Jealous Man Choked, Hit Girlfriend, Police Say

A 28-year-old Greenfield man is accused of choking his girlfriend after becoming jealous when he thought she had been talking to her ex.

The man, whose identity is being withheld to protect the woman’s privacy, was charged with felony strangulation and suffocation - domestic abuse and misdemeanor battery – domestic abuse in Milwaukee County Circuit Court on March 28, after police say he punched his girlfriend and choked her in 8-10 second intervals for approximately one minute four days earlier.

If convicted of both counts, he faces a maximum of 6 years and 9 months of imprisonment and $20,000 in fines.

According to court documents, the boyfriend had been out drinking with friends. His girlfriend was asleep at the couple’s apartment in the 6400 block of English Meadows Drive when her boyfriend came home.

The woman awoke to the lights on in her bedroom and her boyfriend standing over her with his face near hers while she was in bed. The man began to yell at his girlfriend and asked questions about another man who is the father of the woman’s child.

When the woman denied seeing her ex, the man became more angry and choked the woman by applying pressure around her neck with his right hand five or six times, each lasting 8-10 seconds.

The woman told police the man also swung at her with his left hand, punching her in the forearm. The man also verbally threatened more harm if she saw or talked to her ex.

The man eventually left the woman’s room and fell asleep on the couch. The woman, meanwhile, waited for him to fall asleep and then contacted a friend to come pick her up.

When questioned by police, the man said he did not fully recollect what happened but admitted there was a physical confrontation.

The man is due back in court April 18.