A Cokato woman threatened to kill a man with a large knife and told him, “I would rather slit your throat and watch you bleed out than believe you are a good person,” while holding the blade over his wrist, according to charges.
Julie Ann Neal, 33, faces felony charges of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon and threats of violence.
According to the complaint, law enforcement from the Wright County Sheriff’s Office and Howard Lake Police Department responded to an apartment building in Cokato at about 12:15 a.m. on October 1 after a man reported an assault involving Neal. The man told officers he and Neal did not have a prior or current relationship and had separate apartments, but had spent time together drinking alcohol earlier that day.
READ MORE → Wright County coverage
The man said that earlier in the day, while they were drinking outdoors, Neal made disparaging comments about men, including that it would not matter if they could be cut from the planet. Later, in his apartment, he told Neal he did not want to have sex with her. According to the complaint, Neal then called him a piece of s*** because he felt men deserved equality.
When he questioned her views, Neal pushed him, causing him to fall into the kitchen counter and knock over a dish rack, breaking dishes. Neal then told him, “that’s what a man deserves.”
The complaint states Neal picked up a large knife and asked, “what would make you think that I shouldn’t kill you? You’re just a man. You’re useless.” She then held the man’s wrist down and placed the blade of the knife over his wrist, repeating threats to kill him. Fearing for his life, the man told Neal that women could do whatever they wanted, hoping to de-escalate the situation.
Neal eventually set the knife down and went to the bathroom, allowing the man to flee his apartment and seek help from neighbors.
While in the bathroom of the man’s apartment, Neal became involved in a physical altercation with several neighbors. One woman reported that Neal lunged at another woman, and when she tried to intervene, Neal grabbed her right arm in an attempt to get around her. Officers observed bruising on the woman’s arm. Two other women gave statements consistent with this account.
Officers found a chef’s knife with an eight-inch blade on the kitchen table. The man admitted he was intoxicated, as he had been drinking with Neal and other neighbors. Neal showed signs of significant alcohol intoxication and denied entering the man’s apartment or fighting with anyone.
The charges allege Neal assaulted the man with a dangerous weapon and made threats of violence with reckless disregard for risk. The complaint was filed October 2 in Wright County District Court.
Related MN CRIME Coverage
Otsego Man Charged After Arson, Standoff With Deputies • Stolen Vehicle Pursuit Ends in Wright County, Suspect Sought on Foot • Driver Charged in Albertville Crash That Left Passenger Seriously Hurt
Jurisdictional Context
Wright County, west of the Twin Cities metro, is served by the Wright County Attorney’s Office through the Tenth Judicial District. Felony cases are heard at the Wright County Government Center in Buffalo.
