Background: The residence in Kenosha, Wisconsin, where the reported incident between Michael Navrotsky and his wife unfolded (Google Maps). Inset: Michael Navrotsky (Kenosha County Sheriff’s Department).
A Wisconsin man was accused of allegedly beating his wife at their home after she confronted him over his personal hygiene.
Michael Navrotsky, 67, was taken into custody by law enforcement in Kenosha on Sunday, facing charges of battery, strangulation and suffocation, along with intimidation of a victim, all under the umbrella of domestic abuse. As noted in a criminal complaint obtained by Law&Crime, the conflict reportedly started when his 68-year-old wife, Kimberly Navrotsky, instructed him to take a shower, insisting that he couldn’t sleep on her freshly laundered sheets without doing so.
What allegedly ensued was a violent altercation that sent Kimberly Navrotsky fleeing to her neighbors’ house.
Love true crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life crime stories delivered right to your inbox.
Officers answered a call made by Kimberly Navrotsky upon her return home, where they found her exhibiting multiple visible facial injuries, such as a bloody nose, which she suspected was fractured.
When asked by police what happened, Kimberly Navrotsky said that she and Michael Navrotsky had been “arguing” because he “had not showered in two months.” At one point during their verbal altercation, she told him “she did not want him sleeping on her clean sheets until he had showered.” Michael Navrotsky then allegedly approached her, and she pushed him away out of fear that he might attack her.
According to the complaint, Michael Navrotsky allegedly grabbed his wife by the midsection and her throat. Kimberly Navrotsky said she was not able to breathe for about three seconds. As she kept trying to escape her husband, she said she asked him, “All this over a shower?” She told police that her husband then allegedly “punched her in the face three times with a closed fist.”
As Kimberly Navrotsky noticed that she was “covered in blood,” she told police that Michael Navrotsky claimed the blood was his. She ran into the bedroom and attempted to call 911, but he snatched the phone from her. The alleged attack continued as Michael Navrotsky grabbed her left ankle and started twisting it. She said that she kicked him in the groin and ran to their neighbors’ house to escape.
Kimberly Navrotsky called 911 from her neighbors’ house and was taken to the hospital for her injuries, including a broken nose.
When police questioned Michael Navrotsky, he told them that he and his wife had been arguing that day because he had not showered in about “three weeks.” He stated that Kimberly Navrotsky was the one who attacked him, and that he “back-handed” her once in “self-defense.”
Police believed that Kimberly Navrotsky’s injuries were more consistent with the statement she provided.
According to the complaint, Kimberly Navrotsky spoke to police the day after the alleged altercation to inform them that her husband had been diagnosed with “delusional episodes” and “early onset dementia,” which she believed were the reasons for his violent outbursts. She added that he “refused” to seek treatment.
Michael Navrotsky was booked into the Kenosha County Jail after being charged with substantial battery, strangulation and suffocation, and domestic abuse intimidation of a victim, as well as misdemeanor disorderly conduct. All four charges have a modifier for alleged crimes against an elderly victim.
He remains in custody on $5,000 cash bond. His next court date is set for July 1.
