KINGWOOD — A Tunnelton man indicted on a charge of strangulation pleaded guilty to an information Monday charging him with unlawful assault.
Richard F. Schamberger Jr., 37, told Preston Circuit Judge Steve Shaffer he has completed drug rehab, is under a doctor’s care for his addiction and working full-time.
Preston Assistant Prosecutor Savannah Wilkins said strangulation and felony unlawful assault carry the same jail time, and the victim and arresting officer agreed to the dismissal of the indictment and charging under the information.
“My position was the charge didn’t fit the facts,” Lance Rollo, Schamberer’s attorney, said of the indictment.
According to the information read aloud by the judge, on April 1, 2018, the victim told police she and Schamberger argued about money, and that he locked the door and told her not to leave.
Schamberger, who was under the influence of some substance, wrapped his arms around the woman’s head and neck and threatened to break her neck. She felt faint. The episode ended when someone came to the door.
Wilkins said the state will ask to have Schamberger sentenced under the recidivist law, which would double the minimum prison time he faces to two years.
The state will recommend a sentence of two to five years, suspended for probation, Wilkins said.
It will also ask that Schamberger have no contact with the victim except as allowed in a pending family court case and that he complete a class through RDVIC.
A pre-sentencing report was ordered through the probation department.
In an information, the prosecutor presents the details of the case with the consent of the defendant, rather than take the case to a grand jury for an indictment.
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