Norfolk, Virginia, house to the world’s largest naval base, is well-known to U.S. army veterans.
Nonetheless, a Navy veteran from Norfolk lately made headlines for all of the fallacious causes.
Callahan Kessler, 25, was sentenced on March 13 to 4 years in jail for maliciously assaulting his spouse, which included a conviction for strangulation and abduction.
The abuse allegedly grew to become so extreme that his now ex-wife fled from their Virginia house to a different state to cover from Kessler in 2024, in line with WAVY.com.
Right here’s What Occurred
Based mostly on police reviews, Kessler got here house one night time after being out ingesting and started arguing along with his spouse. The struggle turned violent, and Kessler shoved her right into a counter, positioned his palms round her neck and strangled her, then flung her down a flight of stairs resulting in the basement. Kessler allegedly pressured his spouse to go exterior, the place he continued to push her and stop her from returning to the home.
In line with the report, the sufferer tried to get previous Kessler, however he continued to dam her path, even going again inside the house and locking the door behind him.
His spouse banged on the door a number of instances, hoping Kessler would let her in, however this solely angered the Navy veteran extra. Kessler unlocked the door, met the sufferer exterior, and shoved her once more, inflicting her to fall off the porch stairs, smacking a concrete footpath face-first, shedding consciousness.
To assist the sufferer’s case, footage of the violent incident was recorded on the couple’s house safety digital camera, in line with native police.
Fallout from Assault
After the ugly incident, Kessler’s spouse referred to as a member of the family in Oregon, requesting them to journey to Norfolk and assist her pack up and flee Virginia to get away from Kessler with out him figuring out.
She reported the incident to Norfolk Police in Could 2025, handing detectives damning proof from the house safety system. As well as, the sufferer introduced photographs and video proof of accidents she had suffered within the assault.
Norfolk Police obtained warrants for Kessler’s arrest, charging him with strangulation and home assault. Extra felony prices, equivalent to malicious wounding and abduction, got here from a grand jury that reviewed proof in Kessler’s case.
On Jan. 12, Kessler pleaded not responsible to all prices and advised the courtroom he wish to obtain a jury trial. Nonetheless, Decide Robert B. Rigney discovered the veteran responsible of three felonies and one misdemeanor, and he was sentenced on March 13.
Sentencing Particulars
Rigney didn’t go straightforward on the previous sailor, giving Kessler 4 years imprisonment, however suspending one other 9 years in jail, on the situation that the veteran efficiently finishes three years of supervised probation and shows good habits after he leaves jail, together with paying his ex-wife restitution charges and adhering to a lifetime order that he has no contact along with her.
Whereas in custody, Kessler should full evaluations for alcohol abuse, anger administration, and intervention packages for home violence offenders. He had no earlier run-ins with the legislation.
Court docket officers decided Kessler’s conviction warranted a jail sentence primarily based on the severity of the costs. Based mostly on Virginia legislation, his sentence was across the center or excessive finish of sentencing tips.
Ramin Fatehi, who served as an legal professional within the case representing the Commonwealth of Virginia, applauded the sufferer’s bravery in leaving Kessler earlier than the abuse turned lethal.
“Above all, let me specific my admiration for the braveness of the survivor of this crime and for the assistance that her member of the family supplied to assist her depart her abuser,” Fatehi stated in a press launch. “Mr. Kessler’s prolonged wounding, strangulation, and abduction of his spouse was egregious and will have simply left her completely injured or useless. This isn’t how we deal with individuals we declare to like, and after we abuse our relations, we should pay a value. My workplace will proceed to focus our efforts on the violent crimes that traumatize and endanger our neighbors.”
