A Vancouver man allegedly trapped his girlfriend inside his apartment and blinded her after she wouldn’t give him money, court records say.
Joseph Alfredo Hall, 42, made a first appearance Wednesday in Clark County Superior Court on suspicion of first-degree domestic violence assault, unlawful imprisonment and interfering with reporting domestic violence.
Judge David Gregerson set Hall’s bail at $200,000. He is scheduled to be arraigned Sept. 10.
Vancouver police responded at 7:44 p.m. Monday for reports of an assault at the Oak Knoll Apartments, 1818 E. Fourth Plain Blvd. Before police arrived, the victim was taken by ambulance to OHSU Hospital in Portland for significant injuries to her eyes, a probable cause affidavit states.
Shelly Thomas, a neighbor in the apartment building, told police the woman came to her door around 6 p.m. saying she couldn’t see and that Hall had beaten her. The woman told Thomas that Hall wanted her to give him money for drugs, and she refused, according to court records.
Hall took her phone, she said, and kept her in his apartment for three hours. She said Hall kept poking her in both eyes until she could no longer see while she screamed for help, the affidavit states.
The woman told Thomas that when Hall left the room, she felt her way out of the apartment and into the elevator. She took the elevator down and went to Thomas’ door, according to court records.
Thomas called 911 and said that it looked like the woman’s eyes had been “gouged out of her head.”
Thomas said the woman went in and out of consciousness before paramedics arrived, court documents say.
Doctors at OHSU Hospital said the woman will likely be permanently blinded from her injuries, according to the affidavit.
Police obtained a search warrant for Hall’s apartment and found him inside. Hall was arrested, and police said he had blood on his hands. Police also said they found damaged items in the living room that suggested a struggle, court records state.
An officer said he had responded to a call at Hall’s apartment about a week prior involving the couple.
