Port Clinton man pleads guilty to attempted murder

PORT CLINTON — A Port Clinton man recently pleaded guilty to the attempted murder of a close family member, among other felony charges. At a court hearing on April 30, Brandon R. Heath, 36, 600 block Fremont Road, withdrew his former not guilty pleas and pleaded guilty to all the charges listed in his July 2024 indictment: • Two counts of felonious assault, each a second-degree felony • One count of attempted murder, a first-degree felony • One count of kidnapping, a first-degree felony • One count of strangulation, a second-degree felony • One count of disrupting public services, a fourth-degree felony • One count of assault, a first-degree misdemeanor Heath is scheduled to be sentenced at 10 a.m. on July 2. Background The investigation into Heath first began on July 7, 2024, when Port Clinton police responded to a call in the 600 block of Fremont Road due to a report that a man was allegedly assaulting a woman, according to a Port Clinton police report. When officers arrived at the scene, they identified the man as Heath and observed him standing over a woman in the street with his hands on her head. When one of the officers attempted to approach Heath, he let go of the woman's head, causing her head to hit the pavement, the report states. Officers proceeded to detain Heath and placed him in the back of a cruiser. Police additionally called for a "squad" to assess the woman's injuries. While in the car, Heath allegedly told officers that he and the woman had an altercation at a local bar over another man and admitted to pushing her. Police noted that the woman was lying in the road with a swollen eye, had marks on her neck and body as well as blood on her face and neck. The person who first called the police regarding the incident was asked by officers to stay with the woman and to make sure she doesn't move, the report states. When the squad arrived at the scene a short time later, they began assessing the woman's injuries and determined that due to the severity, they wanted to have her medically flown to a hospital in Toledo for treatment. After transporting Heath to the jail, one of the officers had a follow-up conversation with the caller at the hospital, where she told police that she initially found the woman outside, covered in mud. The caller said that the woman showed up at her house and told her that Heath "choked her" and "busted her lip" while at the bar before she ran away from him, the report states. The caller told police that a short time later, Heath caught up with both of them and came up to their vehicle with a pocket knife, threatening the woman to come out of the vehicle. Heath proceeded to push the woman into some bushes and began punching her in the face and kicking her body, the report states. The caller explained to officers that she dialed 911 and that Heath threw her phone, breaking it, before continuing to attack the woman. On July 8, a Port Clinton police officer received a call from one of the woman's family members explaining that the woman's CAT scan revealed that she had suffered two brain bleeds. The victim also had torn cartilage in her throat, a fractured left rib, bleeding from her left ear and a swollen right eye with a laceration, the report states.