Background: News footage of Tuscaloosa Police Captain Kip Hart leaving jail (WBRC). Inset: Kermit Thomas “Kip” Hart III (Tuscaloosa County Sheriff”s Office).
An Alabama police captain has been placed on administrative leave following his arrest and subsequent 24-hour detention on charges of domestic violence involving allegations of strangulation against his girlfriend.
Kermit Thomas “Kip” Hart III, age 57, who holds the position of captain in the Criminal Investigations Division at the Tuscaloosa Police Department, now finds himself on the other side of the law. According to court records accessed by AL.com, officers responded to a domestic disturbance call at the home of a woman who claimed Hart had allegedly strangled her. The incident reportedly occurred after midnight on a Sunday, prompting the woman to flee to a neighbor’s house clad only in a shirt and underwear. She informed the police that she and Hart had been romantically involved since 2019.
According to police reports, the woman had suspicions that Hart was communicating with another woman and decided to check his phone while he was asleep.
She further disclosed to authorities that Hart had been unfaithful in the past, but they had reconciled until recent events reignited her concerns. Approximately three weeks prior, she allegedly discovered Hart deleting messages from his phone. She also claimed to have seen him using a Google texting app to correspond with another woman.
Police allege that when Hart awoke to find the woman going through his phone, he reacted violently. The woman recounted to officers that he allegedly attacked her by placing his hands around her neck and, after throwing her to the floor, attempted to choke her again by putting her in a headlock.
Struggling to call for aid, she reported that when she attempted to scream, Hart allegedly stifled her cries by covering her mouth and instructing her to “Shut the f— up.”
According to police, they saw red marks on the woman’s neck and “dried blood underneath her right nostril, possibly from Hart covering her mouth and nose.”
Police caught up with Hart around 3 a.m. and took him into custody. During his interview, Hart told police that he woke up to the woman hitting him on the head and accusing him of talking to another woman. Police wrote that they saw “redness and swelling” on the left sides of his neck and face.
Hart denied to police that he strangled the women, but admitted to “wrapp[ing] her up” and covering her mouth with his hands when she screamed.
Hart was arrested and charged with domestic violence strangulation. After spending 24 hours on a domestic violence hold at the Tuscaloosa County Jail, he posted $5,000 bond and was released early Monday morning. He was placed on administrative leave by the Tuscaloosa Police Department.
