Willits Man Arrested After Strangling Mother of His Children, Says MCSO

This is a press release from the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office. The information has not been proven in a court of law and any individuals described should be presumed innocent until proven guilty:

On 11-26-2021 at about 12:50 AM Mendocino County Sheriff’s Deputies were dispatched to a possible domestic violence incident in the 25000 block of Madrone Drive in Willits, California.

Deputies arrived and contacted an adult female and a witness to the incident at the location.

Deputies learned John Knight [age 37 from Willits] had been in a relationship with the adult female and they had children in common.

Deputies learned Knight came to the location and banged on the garage door and then the front door.  When the adult female attempted to talk to Knight, he grabbed her by the neck and began to strangle her, making it difficult for her to breath.  Knight then forced his way into the residence, knocking the adult female onto the couch before she struck Knight a couple times to get him to stop.

The witness called 9-1-1 and Knight left the location.

While the Deputies were at the location Knight was seen in a Honda on a road behind the location.  Deputies were able to stop Knight and detain him while they completed their investigation.

The adult female was found to have visible marks on her body, reportedly associated with the incident.

Deputies found Knight to be on county parole (PRCS- Post Release Community Supervision) with numerous terms.

Knight was arrested for domestic violence battery (273.5 PC) and violation of PRCS (3455 PC) and was booked into the Mendocino County Jail where he was to be held in lieu of $25,000.00 bail.