Wheeler man charged with strangulation, endangering safety and battery

By LeAnn R. Ralph

MENOMONIE  —  A 26-year-old Wheeler man convicted of first degree child sexual assault and felony imprisonment in two prior cases has now been charged with strangulation, endangering safety and battery.

Mykle J. McMahon is charged with two felony counts of strangulation and suffocation and second degree recklessly endangering safety along with one misdemeanor count of battery.

According to the criminal complaint, the alleged victim reported that in August, after arriving home from pontooning, McMahon pushed her down and got on top of her. He allegedly bit her multiple times and also grabbed a knife and pointed it at her chest. The alleged victim said she was afraid McMahon was going to stab her, so she held onto the knife blade to prevent him from stabbing her and received cuts to her hands that appeared to deputies to be partially healed.

McMahon then allegedly stuffed a VCR tape and sheet into her mouth to muffle her screaming, grabbed her by the hair and punched her in the face and in the back of the head. The alleged victim said McMahon then got off of her and allegedly grabbed a hatchet and threatened her with it by waving it around and swinging it at her a couple of times, the complaint states.

The alleged victim said McMahon grabbed her with one hand on her neck and held her up against the wall, which restricted her breathing but did not cause her to lose consciousness. The alleged victim said she felt as though she was going to pass out due to the lack of oxygen, according to the complaint.

McMahon allegedly then told the woman to get in the shower because she was bloody and her hair was a mess. The woman said her arms were so swollen that she could barely move them, according to the  complaint.

The alleged victim told investigators she was afraid she would never again see her parents or her sister, and she decided to submit to whatever McMahon requested because she was fearful of him, the complaint notes.

The alleged victim and McMahon had been living together for a number of months, according to the complaint.

Potential penalties

The complaint states that a review of the Wisconsin circuit court access revealed McMahon was convicted of false imprisonment in Dunn County in September of 2016 and qualifies as a repeat offender.  

Strangulation and suffocation is a Class H felony which carries a penalty, upon conviction, of a fine of up to $10,000 and/or a prison term of six years.

Because McMahon is a repeat offender, if convicted, the prison term could be increased by up to four years.

Second degree recklessly endangering safety is a Class G felony that, upon conviction, carries a penalty of a fine of up to $25,000 and/or a prison term of up to 10 years.

Because McMahon is a repeat offender, if convicted of endangering safety, the prison term could be increased by up to four years.

Since McMahon allegedly used a dangerous weapon, the maximum prison term could be increased by up to six months.

Misdemeanor battery carries a penalty, if convicted, of a fine of up to $10,000 and/or a prison term of up to nine months.

Because McMahon is a repeat offender, the prison term could be increased by up to two years if convicted of misdemeanor battery.

Since McMahon used a dangerous weapon, the maximum prison term for the misdemeanor battery, if convicted, could be increased by up to six months.

Bail was set at $2,500 cash August 21.

McMahon has remained in custody at the Dunn County jail since August 20 and was scheduled for another court hearing November 14.

Prior sentences

In September of 2016, McMahon was sentenced to 60 days in jail and three years of probation for the false imprisonment charge.

McMahon also appeared in Dunn County Circuit Court in September of 2016 before Judge Smeltzer for a probation review hearing on the conviction of first degree child sexual assault.

Judge Michael Bitney sentenced McMahon to 15 years in state prison, 15 years of extended supervision and 15 years of probation on April 1, 2015, but imposed and stayed the sentence and ordered McMahon, as a condition of probation, to serve one year in the county jail.

As the result of the probation review hearing for the conviction of first degree child sexual assault, Judge Smeltzer ordered McMahon to spend 90 days in jail with Huber privileges and accepted a credit of 26 days for time already served.

A 12-year-old girl reported to a representative of the Dunn County Department of Human Services that McMahon had raped her in April of 2014.  

According to court records, McMahon is six feet four inches tall and weighs 300 pounds.

McMahon told investigators the girl had consented to the sexual contact.

In the case of false imprisonment, the Dunn County Sheriff’s Department received a call in August of 2016 from a staff member at Mayo Menomonie who reported a woman was in the emergency room being treated for injuries sustained in a domestic abuse incident at a residence on Railroad Avenue in the Village of Wheeler.

The 25-year-old woman told deputies on the previous night, she and McMahon were involved in a physical altercation in which McMahon allegedly suffocated her, pushed her around, took her keys and would not allow her to leave the residence

The woman said she wanted to go home to the City of Menomonie so she could be closer to a hospital since she was due to give birth at any time.