Hegna convicted on assault charge

Luke Richard Hegna, 36, Little Falls, was sentenced in Morrison County District Court to 17 days in local confinement and two years of supervised probation and fined $100 for one misdemeanor count of assault. One felony count of assault by strangulation was dismissed.

The conditions of Hegna’s supervised probation include no alcohol or controlled substance use, submitting to random testing and completing a comprehensive assessment with outpatient treatment and aftercare.

The charges stem from a Nov. 1, 2023 incident, when the Little Falls Police Department received a report of an assault occurring at a residence on Fifth Avenue Southeast in Little Falls. An officer arrived at the scene and spoke with the victim.

According to the report, the officer observed the victim had multiple red marks on both sides of her neck, chest and face. Her left ear was “reddish, purple in color.” Her left facial cheek appeared to have swelling and was red. She allegedly said Hegna had assaulted her by striking her in the head and strangling her. She said she bit Hegna in self-defense.

The victim said Hegna was angry that evening and pushed her down. She said Hegna got on top of her as she was laying on her back. She said Hegna put both hands around her neck and choked her. She said she was unable to breathe or speak, and she thought Hegna was going to kill her, according to the report.

The victim said it felt like the sides of her neck were burning during the incident and were still burning while giving the statement to the officer, per the report. She said after Hegna stopped strangling her, he used his closed fist to strike her multiple times. She said she tried to block the punches and also described latching onto Hegna’s arm and biting it “very hard.”

According to the report, multiple law enforcement officers arrived at the scene and directed Hegna to exit the residence, but he would not respond. Officers entered the home and found Hegna hiding in the upstairs master bedroom closet. Hegna was placed under arrest for the assault.