EBERLY

BUCKHANNON — An Upshur County man faces charges after allegedly strangling and striking his partner, while also facing outstanding charges in Gilmer County for a similar incident.

Christopher Austin Eberly, 27, is charged with one count of strangulation, a felony. He is also charged with one count of domestic battery and one count of domestic assault, both misdemeanors. Eberly is currently being held in the Tygart Valley Regional Jail on a $25,000 cash-only bond.

According to the criminal complaints filed by Deputy R.T. Lamb with the Upshur County Sheriff’s Office, on May 18, the Upshur County Communication Center received a 911 call from the alleged victim who reported that she had just been involved in a physical altercation with Eberly. The alleged victim advised 911, “My partner choked me out, gave me a bloody nose, punched me a bunch of times, and I’m scared.”

West Virginia State Trooper C.A. Elmore, Deputy Frazier and Lamb met with the alleged victim on US Highway 33, the complaint states. The alleged victim had fled the residence due to fear for her safety. Upon contact, the officers observed the alleged victim to be “physically trembling, hysterically crying and visibly fearful” while she attempted to provide information regarding the incident. She reportedly told the officers that Eberly had become extremely upset and violent after she mistakenly played the wrong song, causing Eberly to accuse the alleged victim of cheating on him. She reportedly further advised that Eberly poked her in the eye and choked her, causing a bloody nose and pain in her throat area.

Lamb observed and photographed the alleged victim’s neck, which appeared red in color and displayed petechiae, the complaint states. Petechiae forms when tiny capillaries break and bleed beneath the skin. Lamb also observed blood on her left arm and jeans, which she advised was from her bloody nose.

The alleged victim provided officers with video footage recorded from inside the residence, depicting the altercation, the complaint states. After reviewing the footage, Lamb writes that the footage allegedly shows Eberly standing over the alleged victim as she was lying in bed. The video showed the alleged victim attempting to push Eberly away while yelling “Get off!” Eberly then set down an alcoholic beverage in the video, placed his hands around the alleged victim’s neck “in an apparent attempt to control her” while screaming profanities at her.

The footage allegedly further depicted Eberly keeping his left hand around the alleged victim’s throat for well over 30 seconds while striking her in the face with his other hand, the complaint states. The alleged victim could be heard “hysterically crying and appeared fearful” while still lying on the bed. Eberly is reportedly seen repeatedly grabbing the alleged victim by the throat with both hands and striking her in the face multiple times.

Additionally, the video allegedly shows Eberly placing the alleged victim in a choke hold by wrapping his forearm around her neck before “aggressively” forcing her onto the bed and prying her neck into a “dangerous and compromising position,” the complaint states. During this, the alleged victim could be heard saying she could not breath and she was scared.

In a written statement to police, the alleged victim reportedly advised that Eberly was “screaming at me, and he choked me and tried to gouge my eye out. I got a bloody nose from him hitting my face. I went to the bathroom to stop the bleeding,” the complaint states. The Upshur County Communication Center further advised the officers that Eberly had multiple forthwith felony warrants issued out of Gilmer County for strangulation, kidnapping and attempt to commit a felony, all involving the same alleged victim during a separate incident. According to magistrate court records, the charges in Gilmer County were filed in March.

According to the complaint, Elmore and Lamb located Eberly attempting to leave his residence and placed him into custody without incident. While at the residence, officers reportedly observed and photographed blood spots inside the bathroom and located multiple open and empty alcoholic beverage containers.

Eberly is also being held on a $75,000 cash-only bond for the charges in Gilmer County.

A preliminary hearing for Eberly has been scheduled for May 26 in Upshur County Magistrate Court.