AUSTIN — A homeless man faces five charges after allegedly kicking down a door at his former residence in Austin to choke a female occupant on July 7.
Victor Dupree Whitehead, 37, no known address, was charged Tuesday in Mower County District Court with two counts of first-degree burglary and domestic assault by strangulation. All felonies. He was also charged with two gross misdemeanor counts of domestic assault, based on previous offenses.
Mower County District Court Judge Judge Donald Rysavy se bail at $100,000. Whitehead's next court date was set for July 18.
The complaint says two males were at the victim's residence — the specific address was unlisted and unavailable, according to county attorney Kristen Nelsen — for an after-bar party. They were on the back deck when Whitehead allegedly began kicking the front door, breaking the wood around it.
According to the complaint, the victim's 12-year-old child told authorities that his mother opened the door and was punched in the face by Whitehead, who then began choking her with both hands in a way that "if he moved it any more it would snap her neck." The boy managed to pull Whitehead off his mother before fleeing.
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Two men who were in the victim's residence told authorities they also observed Whitehead choking the victim, which prompted the 911 call, the complaint says.
The victim was not present when authorities arrived. The complaint says she called the Law Enforcement Center hours later to say she was not injured.
Whitehead, who was convicted of misdemeanor assault in Freeborn County earlier this year, faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $35,000 fine if convicted of all charges.
