WAILUKU — A man who abused a woman in Hawaii last year was on parole for a domestic battery conviction from Illinois, authorities said.
Royce Turner was sentenced last month on Maui to one year in jail after he was found guilty of misdemeanor abuse and interference with reporting a crime, The Maui News reported Monday.
His former girlfriend told authorities that Turner placed his hands on her throat to choke her in Kihei in August.
Turner has maintained that he did not try to strangle the woman, but he did grab her and take away her phone to prevent her from calling police, said Tyler Stevenson, deputy public defender.
The 29-year-old was convicted of domestic battery in Illinois in September 2016. He was sentenced to three years in prison but was released in March 2018, according to court documents. He had his parole transferred to Hawaii.
Turner selected another victim instead of ending “his violent and abusive behavior,” Deputy Prosecutor Shelly Miyashiro said.
“For grabbing her and taking her phone, I know I was wrong,” Turner told the court. “I was attempting to break up with her. Our relationship wasn’t healthy.”
The judge ordered Turner to serve the Hawaii sentence after he completes his sentence in Illinois.
“That’s because he decided to commit this crime while he was on parole for an even worse crime,” Judge Richard Bissen said.