Strangulation charges filed against 2 men
Butler police arrested two city men on felony strangulation charges stemming from unrelated domestic disputes.
The defendants — 23-year-old Richard M. Vennell and 57-year-old Mose A. Lane — were both placed in the Butler County Prison following their arrests over the weekend.
Police said that shortly after 11 p.m. Sunday they were called to a home on the 300 block of South Washington Street for a report of a woman yelling for help.
The woman apparently took off running from the home before police got there. Officers found her bleeding from the mouth, according to court documents, with scratches on her face.
Police also found Vennell, who was identified in documents as the woman's fiancé.
The victim told police that Vennell had thrown her to the floor and strangled her, “impeding her breathing” for several seconds.
She recounted that when she tried to scream for help, police said, the defendant put his fingers in her mouth to keep her quiet.
Officers noted that the woman's injuries included several cuts on the inside of her mouth and several bite marks and scratches on her back.District Judge Kevin O'Donnell arraigned Vennell on a felony charge of strangulation and a misdemeanor charge of simple assault. He was placed in the county prison on $7,500 bail following arraignment.Lane was arraigned on similar charges in connection with an alleged assault about 3 p.m. Friday at a home on the 400 block of Liberty Street.Police accused the defendant of strangling his girlfriend's 15-year-old son, documents said, causing the boy to have difficulty breathing for about 10 seconds.Afterward, police said, Lane smacked the boy on the back of the head. An officer noted the youth's head was swollen from where he was hit.O'Donnell arraigned Lane about 9:45 p.m., and remanded the defendant to the county prison on $10,000 bail.
