Man charged with assault of woman, pulling gun

Published 1:56 pm Tuesday, April 16, 2024

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A Twin Lakes man was charged Tuesday in Freeborn County District Court with reportedly picking a woman up and slamming her down on the ground Saturday night, after which witnesses said the woman had a seizure.

Camren Michael Cunningham was charged with one count of third-degree assault and two counts of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon tied to the incident. The second-degree assault charges came from Cunningham allegedly pulling out a handgun on two others.

Court documents state officers were called to a residence in Albert Lea Saturday night regarding a woman who may have been assaulted. When they arrived, they found a large group of about a dozen people at a bonfire, and the woman was on the ground and being helped by Mayo Ambulance and Albert Lea Fire Rescue crews.

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One witness told police that the woman and Cunningham, who have a child together, had started arguing because the woman was letting someone watch their child for the night. The witness stated Cunningham instigated the fight and that he grabbed and pushed the woman. She fell to the ground the first time, and then Cunningham eventually picked up the woman and threw her to the ground. She reportedly hit a vehicle before reaching the ground. The witness thought the woman had broken her back and said she couldn’t move her fingers.

A second witness described a similar account to police and said he believed the woman had a seizure once she got onto the ground. That witness accused Cunningham of also pointing a gun at the woman.

Another individual stated he stepped in front of the gun and told Cunningham that if he were to shoot anyone, he should shoot him. After that, Cunningham reportedly put the gun down and said “I’m not gonna shoot you.”

Another person stated she walked up to Cunningham to try to calm him down and said at one point, Cunningham reportedly walked to his car, grabbed a gun and started to walk back.

Officers were not able to locate the gun.

When officers tried to talk to Cunningham, he was reportedly very combative. He had bloodshot and watery eyes and an odor of alcohol on his breath.

Because of threats to kill himself, he was transported to the emergency room at Mayo Clinic Health System in Albert Lea and remained in the car for over 40 minutes for the medical assessment, banging his head on the vehicle and trying to force the door open to leave the car. He was eventually cleared and taken back to the jail.

In court Tuesday, Freeborn County District Court Judge Christy Hormann set Cunningham’s bail at $300,000 without conditions and $150,000 with conditions.

He is next slated to appear in court April 25.