A 23-year-old Browning man who strangled his girlfriend using a lanyard and attacked a different girlfriend a year later was sentenced Tuesday to five years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Jeremiah James Harwood in August 2026 pleaded guilty to strangulation, assault resulting in serious bodily injury and witness tampering under a global plea agreement for charges stemming from two separate cases. He entered the pleas before Chief U.S. District Judge Brian Morris.
According to court documents, Harwood tackled his girlfriend while trying to take her phone. He then strangled her using the lanyard she was wearing around her neck and began choking her until she couldn’t breathe. Once she stopped resisting, he let go.
While on pretrial release for the strangulation charge about a year later, Harwood attacked his new partner on two separate occasions about two weeks apart. Both times, he sent her to the hospital with significant head injuries. The victim was diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury after the second assault, which required intubation and surgery.
Law enforcement began an investigation after the second assault, at which point Harwood reached out to the victim and attempted to persuade her to change her statement and tell investigators he was not involved. She reported him to the FBI.