An argument at the Holiday Hotel on Wednesday night escalated into violence that led to attempted murder, fourth-degree assault and first-degree strangulation charges.
Henderson police arrested Eric Austin Easley, 43, and booked him into the Henderson County Detention Center.
He is being held on a $250,000 cash bond, according to the jail’s website.
According to a release from the Henderson Police Department, officers arrived at the Holiday Motel on South Green Street Wednesday following reports of an active domestic disturbance in the parking lot.
Dispatchers relayed that an enraged male was strangling a female, making threats to end her life and actively attempting to fight bystanders and staff, said the release.
Officers arrived to find the adult female unresponsive and lying in the parking lot, and the motel owner was also found disoriented on the scene with visible facial injuries after attempting to stop the assault, said the HPD release.
Officers detained Easley and placed him in custody before immediately giving first aid to the victim, who was unconscious, until EMS and Henderson Fire Department arrived, said the release.
Witness statements collected at the scene revealed that Easley allegedly dragged the victim from a motel room by her ankles, causing her head to strike the sidewalk and pavement, before straddling her and strangling her with both hands while making explicit death threats, said the release. The motel owner was struck in the face by Easley while attempting to save the victim, police said.
Police say that Easley admitted to officers that he had intentionally attempted to kill the victim following an argument, said the release.
Easley and the victim had reportedly been in a relationship and living together for about 1 ½ years, said the release.
The victim was taken to a local hospital for treatment. As of Friday, she is still at the hospital for treatment, said the release.
Some initial media outlets reported that one of the charges was murder, said HPD Sgt. Bill Russell, the department’s public information officer. Russell on Friday morning said the victim had not passed but was in the hospital.
He said the jail had the charge listed as murder on its website but that is not accurate. Russell also said that the charge has to be entered in the program the department uses as murder-domestic violence and then a box must be checked to indicate attempted murder, which may not show fully on the jail’s website.
