By Jacob Mathias

After allegedly pinning his girlfriend to the ground and punching her in the face multiple times, a Stevens Point man faces over a decade in prison.

Jerome Castona, 38, is charged with felony false imprisonment, a charge for which he could see up to a $10,000 fine, six years imprisonment or both if convicted. As the defendant is a repeat offender, having been found guilty of felonious possession of narcotics, an addition of up to four years imprisonment can be added to his sentence.

Castona is also charged with misdemeanor battery for which he could see up to a $10,000 fine, nine months imprisonment or both. An additional two years can be added due to the repeat offender status.

According to court documents, on May 28, 2016, Stevens Point Police officers responded to a domestic disturbance call on the 900 block of Second Street at 3:15 PM. When they arrived, officers met with a woman who identified herself as the defendant’s girlfriend and that he’d struck her several times in the mouth.

The victim reported that earlier in the evening Castona had come home and was angry over an argument they’d had the previous day. The nature of the argument was not revealed. The defendant had reportedly been drinking.

The argument began verbally with Castona calling the victim a “piece of [expletive]” and other names. He then punched a television set before punching the victim on the right side of the mouth.

The defendant then pulled the victim’s hair, punched her in the mouth again and pushed her into the television causing it to break.

The victim said Castona then took her to the ground, put his knee to her chest and held her while there saying “die, [expletive]” multiple times.

At this point another man entered the room and Castona let the victim up but no before allegedly punching her in the face one more time. The witness confirmed the attack and said he entered the home after hearing a “commotion.”

After police arrived the victim signed a non-permission/non-consent form and enforced the 72-hour no contact rule against Castona.

Castona is scheduled to make his initial appearance in Portage County Circuit Court on June 20 at 1:30 PM.