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WARREN -- The victim of an alleged domestic assault at the hands of Marine Corps veteran Kotey Paden testified Tuesday that she thought she was going to die the night of the alleged attack.
The trial of Paden, 31, of Fowler, began Tuesday in the Trumbull County Common Pleas courtroom of Judge Cynthia Rice with jury selection and opening statements by defense attorney Kristin Maxwell and Trumbull County Assistant Prosecutor Gabe Wildman.
Jamie Cross, 28, took the stand and detailed the pair's on-agan, off-again relationship as Cross described their frequent drinking, leading up to their first breakup that she said was because of a domestic dispute in January 2023.
The night of the alleged assault in Paden's Sodom Hutchings Road residence, Cross said earlier that day Paden had been drinking and fell asleep next to her on the couch when the defendant’s phone rang, prompting her to search through his phone.
Cross said she became upset after finding texts from another girl -- someone she knew to be a co-worker at a restaurant where the woman worked with Paden.
Frustrated by what she saw, she said she threw Paden's phone as she yelled at him that they were done.
She testified she was walking down the hallway with her son in hand when Paden punched her in her temple, threw her and her son to the ground, with her son resting at her feet. She said Paden "slowly" started putting his legs around her to straddle her before choking her in a head restraint she said restricted her ability to move.
Cross said as she began to lose consciousness, she remembered looking at her son to tell him goodbye. However, she told the jury she was only able to mouth the words because "the words wouldn't come out because I was being choked so hard."
During cross examination by Maxwell, Cross physically demonstrated, lying on the floor in front of the judge's bench, to show exactly how she was choked.
Cross said she believed the cries from her son, calling out to both Paden and his mother, is what made the defendant begin to loosen his grip as she said he told her, "I'm going to slowly let go."
Wildman asked Cross, "What were you thinking at that point before he lets go?"
She replied, "I thought I was going to die. I didn't know what was going to happen with my (son). I was telling him goodbye, I thought I was done."
The jury listened to a recording Cross made on her phone of her arguing with Paden afterwards as he sat in her vehicle. Cross claimed another video recorded after she fled to her Elruth Court residence in Girard showed Paden continuing to confront her after following her to her home 20 minutes away.
Wildman emphasized the importance of accountability, referencing the defendant as he chronicled a tumultuous relationship between the pair and leading up to the assault for which Paden is on trial.
During her cross examination, Maxwell asked Cross if she was afraid of her client, why didn't she drive to the police department or immediately call police, instead of calling the woman from whom Paden got the phone call earlier that day.
The defendant drove to Cross' home to retrieve his phone, Maxwell said.
Taking the stand later in the proceedings, Paden admitted to drinking that day, but denied punching or choking Cross.
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