(Kenosha County Sheriff)
KENOSHA, Wis. — A 29-year-old Kenosha man was ordered held on $2,500 cash bail Monday after prosecutors charged him with choking and injuring his pregnant partner during a domestic incident last week.
Dawayne L. Balcon appeared in Kenosha County intake court, where Court Commissioner William Michel II set bail and scheduled a preliminary hearing for May 23. Balcon is charged with felony strangulation and suffocation, misdemeanor battery, and disorderly conduct — all with domestic abuse enhancers.
The charges stem from a May 16 altercation at the Gateway Lofts apartment complex on 30th Avenue. According to a criminal complaint, Balcon called police around 2:30 p.m. to report an argument with a woman he claimed was refusing to leave the apartment. Officers from the Kenosha Police Department arrived to find a volatile situation in progress.
Police reported hearing yelling from inside the secured building and seeing a woman on the second floor who appeared distressed. Officers were let into the building by Balcon, who continued arguing with the woman, identified in the complaint only by her first name and as the mother of his unborn child.
Balcon initially told officers the woman “spit on his door” and threw a key at him, prompting him to call 911 because he “knew himself” and wanted police present before the situation escalated. He denied the altercation was physical but eventually admitted to throwing a plastic Windex bottle at her and grabbing her in a “bear hug” to restrain her. He claimed this was necessary after she allegedly tried to punch him.
Officers noted broken household items throughout the apartment building, including a shattered waffle maker near the lobby door and a broken alcohol bottle in front of the unit. The woman told police Balcon became enraged over a Snapchat post, threw her belongings, and screamed that she could “get the [expletive] out” if she kept the app.
The woman, who had packed her things in the elevator and said she planned to stay with her mother, reported that Balcon grabbed her arm with both hands and then wrapped his arm around her neck, using the nook of his elbow to choke her. She described being unable to breathe during the incident and feeling like she was in immediate danger when he lunged at her.
A small abrasion was visible on her right bicep, which she said hurt but did not require medical attention. She declined further evaluation and simply wanted to leave the residence. The woman confirmed that she and Balcon had lived together for several months.
Despite initially denying any physical violence, Balcon admitted to initiating the argument and said he had become upset over issues in their relationship. Police determined that the pair met the legal threshold for a domestic relationship under Wisconsin law, which led to the domestic abuse enhancers on each charge.
If convicted on all counts, Balcon faces up to six years in prison for the felony strangulation charge, plus up to one year in jail for the battery and disorderly conduct misdemeanors. Each count also carries potential financial penalties, with fines totaling up to $21,000 and the mandatory domestic abuse surcharges.
