An Arlington man has been sentenced to life in prison after a Tarrant County jury found he choked a family member and sexually assaulted another person during a violent encounter last summer, prosecutors say. The attack began on Aug. 2, 2023, when a victim jumped from a vehicle in an attempt to escape, only to be pulled back inside and strangled until they lost consciousness, according to the case summary. The defendant, 40-year-old Craig Armstrong, received the life sentence following the punishment phase of his trial.
The Tarrant County District Attorney's Office announced the outcome in a Facebook post, noting that Assistant District Attorneys Jaimie Jernigan and Courtney Mowdy prosecuted the case. The post also credited victim coordinator Carrie Farley and investigators Kristina Gonzalez and Kevin Hilliard, and thanked local law enforcement agencies for helping bring the case to trial, according to the Tarrant County District Attorney's Office on Facebook.
Attack details from DA's post
The DA's post publicly thanked the Arlington Police Department "for their work on this case and for their commitment to keeping our community safe" and laid out the timeline of the August 2023 assault. According to the office, the victim jumped from a moving vehicle on Aug. 2, 2023, before Armstrong pulled the person back into the car and strangled them until they were unconscious. During the punishment phase, jurors heard testimony that Armstrong had assaulted 14 other women and sexually assaulted a child, evidence prosecutors argued supported the life sentence, per the Tarrant County District Attorney's Office.
Court findings and sentence
A judge imposed a life sentence in Tarrant County after verdicts for assaulting a family member by impeding breath and for sexual assault. Prosecutors said the punishment hearing gave victims and witnesses a chance to describe what they characterized as a broader pattern of offenses committed by the defendant, and jurors returned the maximum term allowed. The DA's Facebook post did not include a separate court filing or link to the case docket at the time of the announcement.
Community impact and victims' support
The DA's office highlighted the role of its victim coordinator in the case, underscoring how advocacy and support can factor into serious assault prosecutions. As of the announcement, Arlington police and local advocacy groups had not posted separate public statements beyond the DA's update, and the case illustrates the coordination between local detectives and the county prosecutor's office in bringing complex assault cases to trial.
