A 41-year-old Dundee man is facing criminal charges after Yates County Sheriff's deputies say he placed his hands over a victim's nose and mouth during a domestic altercation last month. Jeremiah M. Berch was taken into custody at 3:25 p.m. on Wednesday in Dundee, New York. He now faces two charges stemming from an August 25 incident.
According to Newport Dispatch, the sheriff's office says an investigation revealed that Berch obstructed the victim's breathing during a physical altercation by placing his hands over the victim's nose and mouth. Deputies subsequently charged him with criminal obstruction of breathing and endangering the welfare of a child.
What the Charges Mean Under New York Law
The endangering the welfare of a child charge, covered under Penal Law § 260.10, is a Class A misdemeanor and applies when someone knowingly acts in a manner likely to injure the physical, mental, or moral welfare of a child under 17, per The Law Office of Matthew Galluzzo, PLLC. That same statute can also result in court-issued orders of protection.
New York law draws a sharp line between the misdemeanor charge Berch faces and a more serious felony. If obstruction of breathing or choking causes physical injury, loss of consciousness, or serious impairment, the charge can escalate to felony strangulation under Penal Law §§ 121.12 or 121.13, which carries state prison terms of up to 7 or 15 years. It is unknown at this stage whether any such elevation applies in Berch's case.
Booking and the Path to Arraignment
Following his arrest, Berch was transported to the Yates County Public Safety Building, located at 227 Main Street in Penn Yan, which houses the sheriff's office, county jail, and 911 dispatch center, according to the Observer-Review.
Berch is awaiting arraignment through Yates County's Centralized Arraignment Part. It is not yet known when Berch is scheduled to appear in local town court, nor whether a court order of protection has been issued in the case.
New York's Strangulation Law
The New York State Bar Association reports 160,000 arrests in the last 12 years under New York's dedicated strangulation and obstruction of breathing statute, which took effect in 2010.
The charges against Berch are allegations.
