Youngstown cops arrest man on assault charge

YOUNGSTOWN — A West Side man faces charges of assault and resisting arrest after reports said he beat his live-in girlfriend after she came home from work and then tried to force her to stop talking to police.

John Houser, 34, of Salt Springs Road, is in the Mahoning County jail after police arrested him about 4:20 p.m. Thursday after they responded to a report of a fight at his home.

Houser’s girlfriend tried to talk to police through a back door and Houser told her not to talk to officers, but police managed to separate them and take the woman outside, reports said. Reports said Houser came outside and tried to take the woman back inside.

The woman said Houser accused her of cheating on him and said he would kill her when she came home from work. When she got home, he threw her against a wall, punched her and choked her. She texted a friend to call the police, which she did, reports said.

When officers took Houser into custody, he tried to run away before he was taken to the ground, reports said.