Salt Lake City — Law enforcement in Utah already treats reports of partner strangulation as a major red flag for future lethal violence. Officers responding to domestic incidents routinely assess danger by asking whether victims have been choked or suffocated by a partner.
A retired Idaho police chief warns that the threat tied to strangulation extends beyond domestic settings and can foreshadow attacks on responding officers. Craig Kingsbury, who led departments in Nampa and Twin Falls, said his research and experience show suspects who assault police often have histories of severe intimate partner violence — frequently including strangulation.
Recent Developments in Utah
Kingsbury pointed to recent developments in Utah. Ryan Michael Bate, 32, has been accused of killing two Tremonton officers. Prosecutors refiled domestic violence charges after a woman reported that Bate had grabbed her throat and thrown her onto a couch last year; officers documented red marks on her neck.
Research on Strangulation and Police Attacks
Two decades ago, motivated by an officer-involved shooting in Nampa, Kingsbury collaborated with a Boise State University stu...