Police: Cape man put woman in chokehold, left bruises

A Cape Girardeau man faces assault charges after putting a woman in a chokehold hard enough to bruise her throat, police said.

The Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office on Tuesday charged Christopher W. Ford, 33, with second-degree domestic assault.

Police went to Ford’s residence in the 1800 block of Dumais Drive shortly before 2 p.m. Monday to reports of domestic assault, according to a probable-cause statement filed in the case by Cape Girardeau police officer David Weidenbenner.

Ford told officers he and the victim had been in a verbal altercation that had escalated into physical violence, according to the statement.

The victim told officers Ford assaulted her when she tried to keep him from entering the residence, Weidenbenner wrote.

She said Ford put her in a chokehold, and officers saw bruising around her throat and on her right bicep, as well as a small cut on her arm, according to the statement.

Ford, who was sentenced to 30 days in jail after pleading guilty to third-degree domestic assault in 2012, was issued a $4,000 cash bond with the condition he have no contact with the victim.

tgraef@semissourian.com

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