Man initially arrested for simple assault now charged with attempted murder

WASHINGTON, Washington County — A man arrested for investigation of misdemeanor assault after allegedly beating his girlfriend now faces a charge of attempted murder after doctors discovered the victim's injuries were much more severe than initially believed.

Jose Delfino Lopez Garcia, 28, of Washington, was charged Monday in 5th District Court with attempted murder, a first-degree felony; and two counts of aggravated assault, a second-degree felony and a third-degree felony. Each charge comes with a domestic violence penalty enhancement if Lopez is convicted.

On Sunday, Garcia was arrested for investigation of simple assault, a class B misdemeanor.

"However, the victim's hospital diagnosis was more serious in nature, showing she had fractured bones and a brain bleed," according to charging documents.

Investigators following up on this information learned that on June 23, the victim had sent her manager at work "alarming messages … describing injuries, stating she was in a frightening situation and asking that police not be called but that her sister be contacted if she failed to report to work," the charges state.

During a video call with the woman, her "manager observed Jose standing behind (the woman) after she turned off a virtual background. (The woman) also asked the manager to save screenshots of their conversation as evidence before deleting them so Jose would not find them," according to the charges.

The charges state that the woman's employer was originally told "that conducting a welfare check could potentially escalate the situation since (the woman) had specifically requested that law enforcement not be contacted. (The manager) following advice from a local victim advocate, wanted the incident documented. She provided screenshots of the conversation, which were uploaded into evidence. (An) officer advised (the manager) to continue working with victim advocacy resources," charging documents state.

On Sunday, however, police were called to the woman's apartment after she was reported to be having a seizure.

"Jose Lopez Garcia stated they had been drinking and that (the woman) had taken several medications before suffering a seizure," the charges state. Police, however, "observed significant injuries on (the woman), including bruising to her face, arms and hands, which raised concerns of domestic violence based on a prior related incident."

At the hospital, investigators were told the woman's facial injuries were likely caused by being strangled, the charges state.

Lopez was arrested for investigation of assault. But the next day, a victim's advocate contacted police to say the woman "had sustained additional serious injuries, including a brain bleed requiring surgery and rib fractures," according to charging documents.

A responding officer noted the woman had two black eyes, chipped teeth, bruising on each side of her head, bruises on her neck, hands, arms, ribs and thighs, prosecutors stated.

"(The woman) stated that she had been physically abused by Jose for the past two months. (She) advised the reason she did not come to police is due to Jose stating that if the police came to their door, he would kill her dog, or kill her, or kill her family. (She) stated that Jose would never let her leave the house, stating that he had cameras set up to notify him if she were to leave. (The woman) also stated that Jose broke her phone and gave her a new one that he could see her activity on," charging documents state.

The woman also detailed to police incidents of being punched and choked by Lopez, the charges state.

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