ORRINGTON, Maine — An 83-year-old man was arrested after attacking his 85-year-old girlfriend and attempting to strangle her until she passed out, court documents state.
Francis Murphy of Orrington was taken into custody Friday on a charge of Class B aggravated assault. He made his first appearance at Penobscot Judicial Center on Monday where District Court Judge Bruce Jordan set his bail at $50,000 cash.
“The victim here is an 85-year-old,” Assistant District Attorney Chris Ka Sin Chu told the judge.
“He admits that he did it. He admits he choked and assaulted her.”
The woman told police that Murphy entered her room late on May 30 or early on May 31 using a flashlight to see, the court affidavit states.
“[Murphy] sat on the bed next to her then wrapped both of his hands around her neck and began choking her,” Cpl. Ryan Fitch of Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office said in the court document.
“[The woman] said that she tried fighting [Murphy] off and scream[ed] for help, but he punched her three times in the head and continued to choke her,” according to the affidavit.
“I thought I was a goner,” the woman told Fitch.
After waking up, the woman decided to “make a run for it” and left her home, walking to the nearby grange hall to call police at 2:11 a.m., according to the report.
She had bruising, abrasions and scratches on her neck and was bleeding from her left ear, according to the document.
The woman, who had been seeing Murphy for 22 years, said that Murphy had been diagnosed with dementia and short-term memory loss and was angry at her because she was going to see her daughter the following day against his wishes and the couple had argued about the issue earlier in the day.
She also told police that Murphy had been talking about killing himself over the past few years.
“[Murphy] has always told her that he would put all his belongings in his car and set his car on fire, then kill himself,” Fitch’s report states.
On the afternoon of May 31, Murphy reportedly set his Toyota Camry ablaze in a Bucksport gravel pit with his belongs inside, including a reported $6,000 in cash.
“[Murphy] said that he ended up leaving the big knife that he planned to kill himself with in the car, and it burned up,” the investigator said.
The knife was on the roof of his completely burned car when Fitch arrived at the scene with Murphy. State fire marshals were called to investigate. Murphy was taken to St. Joseph Hospital for a psychological evaluation, and staff there tried to place him in a psychiatric facility to no avail.
Murphy was released from the hospital on Friday and arrested for aggravated assault. He remained at Penobscot County Jail Monday.
The attorney for the day requested that Murphy be allowed to be transferred to a psychological facility, but Jordan said he was reluctant to issue such an open request, but he did add that he would make the bail reviewable, so such an order could be made if a facility is found.
No court date has been set. Murphy may be indicted by the Penobscot County grand jury later this month.
“If this gentleman, at his age, is looking to kill himself and has also been violent to someone else — that is a very bad combination,” Jordan said.
The judge appointed Bangor lawyer Peter Bos to represent Murphy.
If convicted, Murphy faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $20,000.