INDEPENDENCE, Mo. (AP) - The assault trial of a man accused of shoving a cell phone down a woman's throat has begun. Prosecutors say 24-year-old Marlon Brando Gill was angry and jealous when he forced the phone into Melinda Abell's throat in December. But defense attorneys insist the 25-year-old victim swallowed the phone intentionally to prevent Gill from finding out who she'd been calling.
Gill is charged with felony first-degree assault.
A doctor at a Kansas City hospital's emergency room used a tool called a "pincher" to remove the phone from Abell's throat.
She testified yesterday that she couldn't remember how the phone got in her throat, saying she drank too much that night. Court records show that her blood alcohol content was three times the legal limit.
