A judge found a Vancouver man who trapped his girlfriend in his apartment and blinded her not guilty by reason of insanity Friday.
Clark County Superior Court Judge David Gregerson found Joseph Alfredo Hall, 45, criminally insane and ordered he be committed to Western State Hospital for treatment. Gregerson made the ruling after hearing from two psychologists about psychiatric evaluations of Hall, court records show.
Hall was charged in Superior Court with first-degree domestic violence assault, first-degree domestic violence kidnapping and interference with reporting of domestic violence.
Vancouver police responded at 7:44 p.m. Aug. 30, 2021, 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.
Doctors there said the woman will likely be permanently blinded from her injuries, the affidavit states.
A neighbor in the apartment building told police the woman came to her door about 6 p.m. saying she couldn’t see and that Hall had beaten her. The woman told the neighbor 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 the neighbor 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 the neighbor’s door, according to court records.
Police found and arrested Hall at his apartment. They said he had blood on his hands, and they found damaged items in the living room that suggested a struggle, court records state.
