Charges against a Lehighton man accused of attacking a man with a baseball bat inside a Coaldale home have been held for Schuylkill County Court.
All charges against Jerome Strohl, 52, including aggravated assault, recklessly endangering another person, and two counts each of simple assault and harassment, were held following a preliminary hearing Wednesday before Magisterial District Judge Casimir Kosciolek in Tamaqua.
Police say Strohl hit the man with the bat and swung it at a woman during an argument on Sunday, Oct. 4, at a home on Second St.
Tamaqua Police were called to the home shortly after noon for a disturbance. Dispatchers told the responding officer that Strohl was threatening to shoot the caller’s dog and had said he wanted to die at the hands of police.
When the officer arrived, a man standing on the porch told him Strohl had hit him with a baseball bat and left with a woman in a gray Mitsubishi Outlander.
The man told police Strohl had accused him of stealing jewelry and other items. The two were arguing in the kitchen when Strohl began swinging the bat, hitting him once on the back of the head and once on the back.
Police say the man had injuries to his head and back consistent with being struck by a baseball bat. He was treated at the scene by Tamaqua EMS and taken to St. Luke’s Hospital in Coaldale for further evaluation.
A woman who was upstairs at the time told police she heard arguing in the kitchen and went downstairs to see what was going on. When she reached the bottom of the steps, Strohl swung the bat at her but missed because she ducked, she told police.
Strohl then grabbed her by the head and slammed it into the wall, according to police. The woman told police she ran back upstairs, locked herself in the bathroom and called 9-1-1.
Later that afternoon, police were sent back to the home after the Mitsubishi returned. A woman answered the door and told the officer Strohl was inside. Strohl came out and was taken into custody without incident, police say.
Strohl is being held at Schuylkill County Prison on $25,000 bail.
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