By NEAL WAGNER / Managing Editor

ALABASTER – A 24-year-old Calera man is facing up to 20 years in prison after police said he allegedly assaulted his girlfriend in Alabaster in late January.

The Alabaster Police Department arrested Travis Dannon Easterling, who lists an address on Shirey Lane in Calera, on Jan. 24 and charged him with one felony count of domestic violence by suffocation or strangulation. The charge is a Class B felony, and carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison upon conviction.

According to Easterling’s arrest warrant, the charge stemmed from a Jan. 23 incident in Alabaster, during which the suspect allegedly “choked (the victim), threw her to the floor (and) pulled large amounts of hair out of her head.”

Easterling had a dating relationship with the victim, according to court documents. Following the Jan. 23 incident, the victim sought and received a protection from abuse order against Easterling, which prevents Easterling from being within 1000 feet of the victim.

Easterling is set to appear in Shelby County District Court at 8:30 a.m. on Feb. 17. He has remained in the Shelby County Jail on a $10,000 bond since his Jan. 23 arrest.