UPDATE: Former football player's preliminary hearing waived
Former Central Michigan University football player Michael Kinville's preliminary hearing, scheduled for June 18, was waived, moving the case to district court. His next court date is July 17.
Kinville faces assault by strangulation and domestic violence charges after police say he choked his girlfriend inside his Mount Pleasant apartment.
Assault by strangulation is a 10-year/$5,000 felony, and domestic violence is a 93-day misdemeanor. Kinville bonded out of jail after posting 10 percent of a $20,000 bond.
According to court documents, Kinville arrived at his apartment via taxi with his ex-girlfriend during the early morning hours of May 30. His current girlfriend, whom he has been in a relationship for about a year, was at his apartment when he arrived.
Kinville's girlfriend told police she slapped Kinville in the parking lot and told his ex-girlfriend to get back in the taxi. Police say Kinville and his girlfriend then went into his room where they continued to argue.
Kinville grabbed his girlfriend by one of her legs and pulled her to the ground. After he let her up, his girlfriend left the room and returned after about 15 minutes. Police say Kinville's girlfriend asked why he was with his ex-girlfriend, to which he responded with telling her to stop yelling.
According to the documents, the argument moved into the hallway where Kinville grabbed his girlfriend by the throat and pinned her to the ground for 5-10 seconds. Police say she was not able to breathe while he was holding her throat with his hand and she described the pressure as a seven on a scale of 1-10.
Kinville let her go, then grabbed her throat a second time for another 5-10 seconds. His girlfriend said she hit her head against the floor while trying to get away.
After Kinville let her go, his girlfriend went upstairs and called her father. She later called the police.
His girlfriend reported pain in her ribs following the assault. She had visible bruising on the left side of her throat and a red mark on her right hand, according to court documents. Kinville told police that he and his girlfriend had an argument about his drinking, but that nothing else happened. He denied being slapped and assaulting his girlfriend.
Kinville was a tight-end and team captain on the football team in 2014. He had been on the team since 2010. He is listed as a graduate student on CMU's website.
