A Roseau, Minn., man convicted of assaulting his girlfriend in their home was sentenced Monday to serve 150 days in jail for the crime.
Seven of the nine charges were dismissed against Austin Michael Schell, 21, who was accused of beating his girlfriend, not allowing her to leave their home and then sexually assaulting her.
Schell pleaded guilty in April to one count each of second- and third-degree assault, both considered felonies. In addition to jail time, Schell must serve 10 years of probation and pay $585 in fines as ordered by Judge Donna Dixon of the Minnesota 9th District Court in Roseau.
A no-contact order also in place between Schell and the victim.
Felony and misdemeanor charges of criminal sexual conduct, kidnapping, terroristic threats and domestic assault were dismissed.
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Schell was arrested after his girlfriend's mother made a 911 on Jan. 25 call to report the incident.
Court records state the victim told Roseau County law enforcement that after she returned home from a restaurant at 12:30 a.m., Schell accused her of being unfaithful and proceeded to punch her and beat her with a vacuum and broom handle.
Schell then allegedly choked the woman until she became unconscious then refused to let her leave the home once she awoke.
Court papers also state he threatened to kill her and himself if she reported him to the police.. The couple then had sex, which the woman told investigators she did because she was afraid for her safety. Once Schell fell asleep, the woman fled to her mother's home.
Law enforcement officers arriving on scene observed the woman's face to be bruised and swollen. In the home, they found clothes and linens with blood and one of the woman's teeth that she says was knocked out during the assault.
Officers used a flashbang, a device meant to disorient a person, when they entered the home where Schell was sleeping, Roseau Police Chief Ward Anderson told the Herald in January.
Schell was taken into custody without a fight.
