LAKE HAVASU CITY – A man who abused his girlfriend during an alcohol fueled quarrel in Lake Havasu City has entered a plea agreement and begun serving jail time. Deputy Mohave County Attorney Julia Ketchum said Julian Evaro, 28, had been drinking at Rotary Park with the woman before they argued on July 9 at a residence in the 400 block of North Lake Havasu Ave.
Ketchum said Evaro followed the woman into the garage and closed the door before he punched her in the face several times and choked her while preventing her from using a cell phone to call for help. Evaro pleaded guilty Oct. 10 to unlawful imprisonment by domestic violence in a deal dismissing all other charges.
Superior Court Judge Rick Lambert said the violent behavior would ordinarily bring incarceration in the Arizona Department of Corrections.
“The fact that you’ve avoided prison here is shocking to me,” Lambert told the defendant. He said the state’s case was compromised and weakened given a lack of cooperation by the victim.
“There’s no question in my mind that (otherwise) you’d be going to prison today,” the judge said. “You can thank your lucky stars for that.”
Lambert ordered Evaro to serve 275 days in the Mohave County Adult Detention Center, followed by probation for three years.
