A 40-year-old Summerfield man with a prior battery conviction was arrested after he allegedly strangled a woman in a struggle over her Xanax pills.
The victim told a Marion County sheriff’s deputy that during the altercation Monday night, Michael Lee Gibson pushed her down, causing a scrape to her knee. She said while she was on the ground, Gibson choked her, restricting her airway for about a minute. The victim said she didn’t lose consciousness and was able to get free and call law enforcement, according to the sheriff’s office report.
The deputy observed a scrape on the victim’s right knee and redness in the area around her neck, the report said.
Gibson denied any physical altercation happened. He said he was sleeping and the victim started yelling at him, then called law enforcement to get him arrested. However, the victim’s visible injuries appeared to corroborate her statements, according to the report.
Gibson, who was convicted of battery in 2017 in Marion County, was charged with domestic battery by strangulation and taken to the Marion County Jail, where he was released Tuesday on $3,000 bond. Gibson will appear in Marion County Court on March 9.