WARREN, Ohio - A Niles man was handed his sentence in court on Thursday for attempting to strangle his girlfriend during an argument back in March.

21 News crews in the courtroom tell 21 News that 35-year-old Daren Wilson was sentenced to three years of probation on a charge of Attempted Strangulation after the victim forgave him.

The woman, who is now Wilson's fiance gave a statement in court that the two had made amends and are working on their relationship. Judge Ronald Rice took this into consideration when handing down Wilson's sentence.

The charge stems from an incident in which Wilson and his girlfriend were arguing over a text message he was sending. Police say Wilson pushed the victim to the ground and choked her until she passed out.

Wilson was originally charged with strangulation and domestic violence, but the domestic violence charge was dropped and the strangulation charge was amended to attempted strangulation as a result of a plea deal.

Wilson was one of the first Ohioans to be charged under the state's new strangulation law that went into effect in April of 2023, which makes strangulation a felony rather than a misdemeanor.