A Merrillville man has been charged in connection with a strangulation death during April in Gary.
Tywan Lamont Nichols, 30, was charged in Lake Superior Court with involuntary manslaughter and battery resulting in serious bodily injury in the death of Torrey Shufford, 33, who was injured April 9, lapsed into a coma and died April 13 of asphyxiation, secondary to obstruction/strangulation, court records state.
Witnesses told police that Shufford was not acting normal and was intoxicated April 9 when he allegedly attacked his girlfriend and pushed her, according to the probable cause affidavit.
Nichols intervened by putting a choke hold on Shufford, who stopped breathing, records said.
In an interview with police, Nichols said Shufford and his girlfriend had gotten into an argument at the beach, and the woman left.
Shufford and Nichols drove together to a residence in the 3500 block of Lincoln Street where Nichols told police there was a “tussle” between him and Shufford, documents said.
As Nichols was leaving, he saw Shufford throw the woman to the ground, court records state, and the physical altercation began again.
Nichols said he thought Shufford was drunk and was going to sleep it off, records said.
When individuals checked a short time later on Shufford, they discovered he wasn’t responsive, records said.
Another individual in the house began CPR until the ambulance arrived.
The involuntary manslaughter charge is a level 5 felony, punishable by a sentence of one to six years.
Ruth Ann Krause is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.