Man gets prison term for assault in Penn Township
An Allegheny County man was sentenced to serve up to two years in prison for the assault of his girlfriend earlier this year in Penn Township.
Eric Damien Thomas, 41, formerly of North Versailles and Aspinwall, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of simple assault and summary harassment. As part of his plea bargain, Westmoreland County prosecutors dismissed a felony count of strangulation and a charge of terroristic threats.
According to court records, police responded April 27 to a domestic call from Thomas’ girlfriend, who claimed she was repeatedly punched and kicked during a dispute in her home.
The woman told police Thomas attacked her on a lower floor of the house.
She claimed Thomas hit her in the face, kicked after she fell to the floor and placed his foot on her neck when he said: “You think I choked you before, I’m gonna kill you right now,” police said.
Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Rita Hathaway sentenced Thomas to serve one to two years in prison.
According to court records, Thomas served a sentence of 69 days to 23 months in jail in 2018 for a previous assault.
Rich Cholodofsky is a TribLive reporter covering Westmoreland County government, politics and courts. He can be reached at rcholodofsky@triblive.com.
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