SPARTA, Wis. — A Wisconsin man accused of trying to kill his wife is also facing a felony charge after allegedly striking a paramedic who was called to assess him, authorities said.
Randal Cunitz, 59, pleaded not guilty on Aug. 5 to six felony charges, including attempted murder, strangulation and suffocation, false imprisonment and battery to a health care provider, according to Law & Crime. He also faces five misdemeanor charges.
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The charges stem from an April 27 response to a home in Sparta, after Cunitz’s wife called 911 and told dispatchers her husband had tried to kill her. When a Monroe County deputy arrived at the home, she told him that Cunitz had been drinking and had attempted to strangle her while repeatedly slamming her head into the floor, according to WKBT.
Cunitz’s wife also provided investigators with a recording of the attack, in which Cunitz is allegedly heard saying, “Kill her, kill her, kill that [expletive].”
Deputies searching the home found Cunitz asleep on a couch and were initially unable to wake him. Medical personnel were called to evaluate him.
According to investigators, when a paramedic performed a sternum rub in an attempt to wake Cunitz, he allegedly grabbed the paramedic by the hair or ear and struck him in the nose.
Officers restrained Cunitz as he continued to struggle and warned him that pepper spray would be used if he did not stop resisting, according to reports.
Following medical treatment, Cunitz was booked into the Monroe County Jail on a $250,000 bond. He remains in custody and is scheduled to return to court Oct. 12.
