Man accused of strangling girlfriend due in court
AUSTINTOWN — A township man is facing charges for allegedly strangling his girlfriend and police believe he may have returned to try to finish the job.
Daniel McDonald, 27, of Navarre Lane, appeared by video Friday in Mahoning County Austintown Court to face a misdemeanor charge of domestic violence and one felony count of strangulation.
His bond was set at $7,500 and he was ordered to have no contact with the woman. He is due back in court on Monday.
The Austintown police report states the woman told police that an argument broke out while they were having lunch at a local bar.
They continued back to the woman’s home, where McDonald regularly stays with her.
She told police she tried to shut the door behind her to keep him from entering the house, but he forced his way in, threw her to the floor and started to strangle her.
The woman told police she did not lose consciousness.
She said he stopped choking her, took his dog and clothing and her phone, and left.
She called police within an hour of the incident, the report states. When police arrived around 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, they observed a bump on the back of her head and redness around her collarbone that seemed to support her story.
Police were unable to reach McDonald by phone or at the address she gave them.
The woman told police she was going to spend the night at a friend’s house because she was afraid McDonald would come back.
Just before 9 a.m. on Wednesday, police returned to the woman’s home when she called to say the back door had been kicked in. The woman told police she believed it was McDonald, and that he tipped over the Christmas tree, spilled mop water all over the floor, broke her doorbell camera and removed batteries from the camera mounted on the garage.
The report states McDonald turned himself in at the police station on Thursday.
In January 2024, he was charged with using a firearm while intoxicated. He pleaded guilty in February and was given a $250 fine, 30-day suspended jail sentence, and 12 months probation.