Woman with protection order assaulted in front of child

A Bloomington man is facing a felony charge of domestic assault after pushing a woman to the ground in the presence of their child.

The victim, 22, had a protective order against her former boyfriend, Zachary Poland, 20. Bloomington Police Detective Sgt. John Kovach said the woman went to Poland’s residence to spend time with their 3-month-old child sometime Monday afternoon.

Although she is the one with the protective order against Poland and the specific stipulations of the order are not known, she likely violated the order when she visited the residence, Kovach said.

When she tried to leave, Poland reportedly refused, prevented her from exiting the residence and pushed her to the ground in the presence of their child, Kovach said.
The man denies the assault.

The fall caused an bruise on the back of the victim’s right shoulder and a minor injury to her left hand. At some point, she screamed for help.

A neighbor of Poland’s overheard the screaming and called police, Kovach said. Bloomington police entered the residence at about 3:18 p.m. and arrested Poland.

— Michael Majchrowicz