Man Allegedly Assaulted His Girlfriend Because She Refused to Give Him Marijuana
Just before 1:00 p.m. on Tuesday, Missoula Police Officers were dispatched to a disturbance in a vehicle in the 600 block of South Higgins Ave. The vehicle left the area before Police Officers arrived and was not located.
About 30 minutes later, a second disturbance was reported at Boyd Park and the vehicle that was involved matched the description of the vehicle from the initial report. Police Public Information Officer Travis Welsh explains.
“The caller reported seeing a male screaming at a female who was sitting on a bench and not responding,” Welsh said. “The officers got to the scene, made contact with the male, and quickly learned that he and an adult female were involved in the earlier disturbance. The officers spoke to the male, identified him, and also located a female who left the scene and had gone to a friend’s house nearby.”
The female disclosed that she and her boyfriend had gotten into an argument. She disclosed that she had purchased marijuana at a dispensary and that her boyfriend was acting irrationally and aggressively. Once they got into her car, he started yelling at her to give him her marijuana pipe and her marijuana, but she refused to do so.
She was in the driver’s seat and he was in the passenger seat. He began yelling, cursing and slamming his hands on the steering wheel, then reached across her upper chest and neck with his left arm, pinning her back against the headrest by the neck with his upper forearm, elbow and tricep, and continued reaching to take what he wanted out of her pocket.
“The male, identified as 35-year-old Jason Tolley, as it was reported by the victim, appeared to have put his arm across the front of her throat, restricting her ability to breath,’ Welsh said. “Tolley was placed under arrest for partner or family member assault. The officers then learned that Tolley had been arrested and convicted on at least two prior occasions for partner or family member assault, making this a third or subsequent and a felony.”
The victim said she could not breathe when Tolley used his left arm to pin her neck back. She said she was unable to breathe, was scared for her life, and was unable to speak or yell so she bit Tolley on his arm and hit her car horn as hard as she could. Tolley continued to apply pressure to her neck, and finally released the pressure after he succeeded in taking the pipe out of her left pocket.
Tolley was eventually charged with felony partner or family member assault. Tolley's charging documents can be found here.