Domestic assault charges filed against local man

A Cape Girardeau man, Willie Higgs III, was charged on Wednesday with assaulting his 33-year-old live-in fiancee and endangering the welfare of their 5-month-old daughter.

Cape Girardeau County prosecutors charged Higgs, 32, of 220 N. Park St., with one count each of class C felony of domestic assault and class A misdemeanor endangering the welfare of a child.

He is being held on a $7,500 cash-only bond with conditions that he have no contact with the victim and that he stay at least 500 feet away from her residence and place of work.

If convicted, Higgs faces up to seven years in prison for the assault and up to one year in jail for child endangerment.

Nov. 15 incident

The assault reportedly occurred on Nov. 15 at their residence.

According to a sworn statement by officer Joshua Smith, Higgs allegedly choked his fiancee during an argument. He struck her several times on the face, kicked her and hit her across the back with a board. The victim said she was holding her daughter during the assault and dropped the baby as a result of Higgs' actions.

On Wednesday, the victim filed a complaint at the Cape Girardeau Police Department Headquarters. She alleged that Higgs threatened to kill the baby and himself before he would go back to jail, Smith wrote.

She also said that Higgs didn't allow her take the child out of the house because he suspected that she would not return, said spokesman Sgt. Barry Hovis.

With the victim's permission, police made a forced entry of her home and arrested Higgs, said Hovis. The baby was not noticeably injured.

Smith wrote that he observed bruises around the victim's eyes and large bruises covering her arms, chest, buttocks and back.