Woman tells judge of years of abuse by husband

The man is being held on $300,000 bond.

By JOHN W. GOODWIN JR.

VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF

GIRARD — What was meant to be a Wednesday trial for misdemeanor domestic violence turned into an arraignment on a felony charge, a hearing for a temporary restraining order, and court testimony about years of abuse.

Michael Coe of Parkview Drive, Andover, was in Girard Municipal Court facing a misdemeanor charge of domestic violence against his former wife, who now lives in Liberty.

Judge Michael Bernard, however, said the charge had to be amended after reviewing Coe’s history and a recent threat made against the woman.

According to the judge, Coe has had several past convictions for “assault-related incidents.” The domestic violence charge was amended to a felony, to which Coe pleaded innocent. He will be back in court for a preliminary hearing Monday.

Coe also is charged with misdemeanor violation of a protection order. He is in Trumbull County Jail on a $300,000 bond.

There was a recent assault and threat on Coe’s former wife at her Liberty home. Police reports say the woman went to her mailbox across the street and was grabbed, then hit repeatedly with a hard rubber stick. The attackers, reports said, told her not to be stupid and said they knew where her children live.

The woman told Judge Bernard she believes the attack was an attempt to scare her into not going forward with the pending domestic violence charge against Coe.

The woman asked Judge Bernard for a temporary protection order against Coe. This led to a detailed account of alleged abuse dating back to before the couple divorced in 2001.

The woman told Judge Bernard that she and Coe have not been together since 1993 after an earlier incident.

“It was when they [police] came to get him for stabbing me,” she said. “I was home, we were separated and he came in, came in my room with a long knife and started stabbing me.”

According to the woman, she used a phone supplied by a victim’s advocacy group to call for help because Coe had pulled all the house phone lines. She said he was arrested when he tried to return while officers were still there.

The woman went on to describe various scenes of abuse over the years, some involving threats with a gun. At one point she began shaking and became too emotional to remain in the courtroom — screaming at Coe, “You know what you did to me” as she was being escorted out.

The woman later told Judge Bernard: “I am afraid for my life.”

Coe’s attorney, Janice Timonere of Jefferson, did not object to the temporary protection order, but she did object to the amount of Coe’s bond. She said Coe had no comment after the court proceedings.

jgoodwin@vindy.com