A Dixon man pleaded not guilty Wednesday to several aggravated domestic battery charges, including some that accuse him of strangulation and great bodily harm.

Christopher L. Lindsley, 42, was charged March 23 with one count of aggravated domestic battery involving strangulation, a Class 2 felony; two counts of aggravated domestic battery, a Class 2 felony; and two counts of aggravated domestic battery causing great bodily harm, a Class 3 felony. He is being held in the Lee County Jail.

Also on March 23, charges of possession of 5 grams or less of methamphetamine, a Class 3 felony; and resisting a peace officer, a Class A misdemeanor, were filed against Lindsley.

The battery charges stem from the early morning hours of March 21 when Dixon police were notified for a welfare check, requested by a cab driver who had dropped Lindsley and another individual off at an apartment building on Cummins Street in Dixon.

Police said the individual was badly beaten and could barely speak while being treated at OSF Saint Katharine in Dixon. They were later transferred to a Rockford hospital, according to court records.

After police learned the alleged incident occurred at a residence outside Dixon city limits, the investigation was turned over to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, according to court records.

In an interview with a sheriff’s deputy March 22, the individual said they had a broken elbow and several broken bones in their face, court records show.

The individual alleged that Lindsley punched and hit them in the face with a liquor bottle and socket wrench. After they were knocked to the ground, Lindsley kicked them with his boot, choked them several times to the point that they couldn’t breathe and held a knife to their throat, according to allegations detailed in court records.

The individual told police that during the incident they “kept going to sleep,” that Lindsley said he was going to kill them and that they thought they were going to die; they also said this wasn’t the first time Lindsley hurt them, court records show.

[ Dixon man charged with 5 counts of aggravated battery ]

Lindsley was taken into custody on a warrant about 3 a.m. March 23 after police spotted him riding a bicycle while wearing a wig on the Peoria Avenue bridge in Dixon.

He was initially taken into custody by sheriff’s deputies on charges of attempted murder, aggravated domestic battery and aggravated domestic battery involving strangulation, court records show.

Lindsley is also facing charges of two counts of retail theft not exceeding $300, which were filed Feb. 14. One count is a Class A misdemeanor and the other one is a Class 4 felony as his second violation, court records show.

On Wednesday, Lindsley appeared via Zoom before Lee County Judge Jacquelyn D. Ackert.

Lindsley, through Lee County Assistant Public Defender Will Fawkes, waived his right to a preliminary hearing and entered a plea of not guilty. Fawkes said the waiver and plea applied to all pending cases.

A preliminary hearing is an early court proceeding in which a judge determines if there is enough evidence to reasonably believe that a crime was committed by the defendant.

Lindsley’s next court date is set at 8:30 a.m. April 9, with Ackert.