A 43-year-old Lebanon man will serve time in prison for domestic violence after assaulting and choking his girlfriend.
A Linn County jury found David John Slack guilty on two felony counts of strangulation and a misdemeanor charge of fourth-degree assault in May.
Slack was indicted on charges of first-degree kidnapping and strangulation constituting domestic violence, as well as misdemeanor fourth-degree assault constituting domestic violence and second-degree criminal mischief in October.
Authorities say Slack assaulted the 44-year-old victim until she ran from her home wearing only a towel. She was reportedly treated for large contusions to her face and severe swelling and bruising all over her body.
Judge Michael Wynhausen sentenced Slack to five years and four months in prison May 19. Slack was acquitted on the kidnapping charge, and the criminal mischief charges were dismissed.
Police responded to a physical altercation call at the Mill Race Station apartments around 1 p.m. Sept. 24. The victim said she was asleep when she heard banging on the front door, got up and let Slack inside.
As she was walking back to her bedroom, Slack shoved her from behind and hit her on the back of the head, according to an affidavit.
Then as she lay down on her bed with her face in her pillows, he threw something at her and began pummeling her with a closed fist, then put his knee on her throat and covered her mouth.
Slack then got off the bed and walked around to the end, but his girlfriend got up, and he threw a “large swinging right-handed punch” at her, knocking her to the ground, the affidavit says. She could be heard screaming in pain on a video recording of the incident.
Slack then squared off into a fighting stance with the woman, who grabbed a can of bear mace and sprayed Slack, according to the affidavit. She fled to the patio screaming for help, but he grabbed her and forced her head into his chest, where most of the bear spray hit.
She was finally able to break and run for the front door, but she tripped and fell, taking punches from Slack while she was down, before getting outside.
In 2010, Slack was charged with stealing several urns from the Lebanon International Order of Odd Fellows Cemetery. Detectives knew he was trying to pawn gold in Lebanon and received tips about Slack breaking into a columbarium, a structure with recessed niches often covered by memorial plates.
Three urns were found in a bag left in a slough between the cemetery and the Albany-Santiam Canal. It’s unclear if another four stolen urns were ever found. Police noted at the time that thieves will target urns for jewelry and other possibly valuable mementos, and that Slack may have tried to sell the urns.
Slack was later convicted of abuse of a corpse and first-degree criminal mischief and sentenced to 13 months in prison and more than $6,000 in restitution.
Slack was previously convicted of burglary, criminal mischief, felon in possession of a firearm, resisting arrest, contempt of court, attempted unlawful entry of a motor vehicle, assault, criminal trespass, interfering with a peace officer, fleeing police, failure to appear and theft.
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