Matthew William Zimmerman, 53, of Cedar Hill has been sentenced to 18 years in prison for assaulting his wife.
A jury convicted him March 4 of first-degree domestic assault, and on April 19, Jefferson County Div. 4 Circuit Judge Brenda Stacey handed down the sentence, according to court documents.
The assault occurred Nov. 16, 2019, when Zimmerman beat his wife while she was driving on Hwy. 30. Then, Zimmerman grabbed the wheel and tried to cause a crash, the woman said during her testimony at the trial.
During the assault, Zimmerman “punched her in the head several times to the point where she could not see out of her eye." Deputies who responded to a call about the incident observed “severe swelling on the left side of her face; the swelling started from the area of her temple and extended past her eye and to her lips and nose,” according to the probable-cause statement in the case.
The victim also said during the March trial that her husband had assaulted her on other occasions.
Assistant prosecuting attorney Molly Bravo, who tried the case for the Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, praised the victim for her testimony after the jury returned its verdict.
“Family violence is a serious problem within our communities and I am fortunate to be a part of an office that aggressively pursues these cases,” Bravo said. “I am so proud of the victim for standing up in this case, as well as all of the people who supported her. This was a just outcome for a man who had deliberately hurt someone that he claimed to love. This outcome sends a message that this type of behavior should not be and will not be tolerated within our communities.”