Dayton man indicted, accused of strangling girlfriend, attacking dog with machete

Dayton police responded Sept. 12 to a home in the 800 block of Danner Avenue, where a woman described a series of violent acts over the past several days.

In one instance, the woman said Pickens hit her “multiple times with a closed fist, poked her with a knife and choked her to the point where she almost went unconscious,” according to an affidavit filed in Dayton Municipal Court.

The following day, Pickens was watching his girlfriend’s mother’s dog when he reportedly sliced the dog’s leg with a machete. The woman told police that when she came home she saw Pickens hit the dog on the head three times with a hammer and then throw the dog in the trash, according to the affidavit.

“Not only did this violent defendant physically attack and strangle the victim nearly to the point of unconsciousness, but he attacked a completely innocent dog for no reason,” Montgomery County Prosecutor Mat Heck Jr. stated. “Thankfully, the dog managed to survive.”

Pickens is held on $25,000 bail in the Montgomery County Jail.