Shoemaker accused of strangling girlfriend

A Libby man faces strangulation charges in Lincoln County District Court after allegedly choking his girlfriend earlier this month.

Authorities charged Tyson Laurence Shoemaker, 31, after his partner reported a domestic assault on Sept. 9. In an affidavit, Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office Deputy James Derryberry recalled the victim telling him that Shoemaker had strangled her in anger.

The couple had begun arguing earlier in the evening, the victim told Derryberry. Shoemaker allegedly then “slammed” the victim to the ground and choked her around the neck, court documents said. The victim told Derryberry she screamed and “felt like she was suffocating” during the alleged attack.

Upon inspection, Derryberry noted marks on the victim’s next consistent with strangulation.

Shoemaker was initially held at the Lincoln County Detention Center on a $25,000 bond.

A strangulation of a partner or family member charges carries a maximum punishment of five years in state prison and a $50,000 fine.