Corey Shoup

EVANS CITY — All charges against a 39-year-old Jackson Township man in an abuse and strangulation case have been forwarded to the Butler County Court of Common Pleas.

At a preliminary hearing Tuesday, District Judge Wayne Seibel forwarded the charges against Corey Shoup to the county's Common Pleas court. Shoup is accused of strangling and abusing his girlfriend in late October.

Seibel said he was certain of doing so for the misdemeanor counts of simple assault and criminal mischief, but he hesitated in regard to the felony strangulation charge.

“I have to look at it in the light most favorable to the commonwealth,” said Seibel following his decision.

Seibel said to make that call, he relied on the testimony of the charging officer, James Sickafuse of the Jackson Township Police Department.

Sickafuse said when he met with the girlfriend, he saw her shirt collar had been ripped and her phone broken. He said he also saw marks on her neck, which indicated she was strangled.

“I feel the mark is from an imprint of the chain around her neck,” said Sickafuse.

Public defender Ryan Helsel argued for the charges of simple assault and strangulation to be dropped.

“We were disappointed some of the charges weren't dismissed,” said Helsel following the hearing.

After the hearing, Shoup was returned to Butler County Prison, where he remains on $5,000 bond, which Seibel had agreed to reduce following the hearing.

The hearing began with testimony from the girlfriend, who lives with Shoup. She said, on Oct. 30, she returned home and found Shoup “not in his right mind.” She said later, the two argued and then Shoup went to leave.

“He was looking for his keys, and I didn't give them to him because I didn't think he was OK to drive,” she said.

She said she believed Shoup attacked her because he thought she had his keys. She said he grabbed her shirt by the collar, causing it to rip. She said she tried to call 911, but Shoup grabbed the phone out of her hand and threw it.

When asked by Assistant District Attorney David Beichner if, at any point, Shoup had placed his hands around her neck, she said “no.” When cross-examined by Helsel, she again confirmed Shoup did not choke her.

“It happened so fast,” she said.

Helsel based his argument on this point.

“She was clear in her testimony that he did not strike her,” he said.

Beichner said the officer's testimony gives the strangulation charge merit as well as the photographic evidence submitted to the court. “The evidence is what it is, and I believe it speaks for itself,” Beichner said. “Those are all indicative of domestic violence.”

Shoup will next appear for a formal arraignment Jan. 4 in county court.