OKC police say man strangled his girlfriend; woman dies after two weeks on life support

A woman died Tuesday after two weeks of being on a hospital ventilator after she was allegedly strangled by her boyfriend. 

Oklahoma City police said Alisha Spencer, 38, was pronounced dead at 9:46 a.m. at an area hospital.  

Her 38-year-old boyfriend, whom The Oklahoman is not naming because he has not yet been formally charged, remains in the Oklahoma County jail on $10 million bond. 

About 2:30 a.m. on Feb. 17, officers arrived at a 7-Eleven parking lot near S May Avenue and SW 29 in response to a call about a woman, later identified as Spencer, having significant trauma and bleeding heavily. 

Officers had difficulty understanding Spencer because she had blood pouring out of her mouth, a detective wrote in an affidavit for an arrest warrant. 

Spencer said she was assaulted and pointed north of the parking lot. 

Surveillance footage showed Spencer arriving at the 7-Eleven alone and already injured. EMSA took her to the hospital, where she was placed on a ventilator after life-saving measures. 

Medical staff told officers that due to severe damage to Spencer’s trachea, it appeared she had been strangled. 

Investigators learned Spencer lived in an extended stay suite in the 4300 block of W Reno Avenue, about 4 miles northwest of the 7-Eleven. 

An employee at the property where Spencer lived told investigators Spencer and her boyfriend had fought all night. At one point, the employee told investigators, she heard a woman scream. 

The employee said she and a maintenance worker went to Spencer’s residence earlier in the night after Spencer’s family called and asked for a welfare check to be conducted. 

The employee and the maintenance worker spoke with Spencer’s boyfriend. The boyfriend claimed Spencer left with his belongings, according to the affidavit. 

The employee told investigators she and the maintenance worker went inside Spencer’s residence. They saw “massive amounts of blood on the floor,” according to the affidavit. 

Spencer’s boyfriend allegedly explained that Spencer had fallen and hit her head. He also allegedly said he called police earlier and they already responded. 

The employee and maintenance worker said it appeared the boyfriend was trying to clean the residence. They took photographs of the residence and showed investigators. 

While executing a search warrant, investigators discovered large amounts of blood just inside the door of the living room, as well as on the walls. 

Investigators used forensic spray to find a massive amount of blood in the shower area of the bathroom. 

It appeared there had been an attempt to clean up the blood inside the residence, according to the affidavit. 

Spencer’s boyfriend told investigators he and Spencer drank together that night. 

The detective wrote that Spencer’s boyfriend changed his story a few times. He is alleged to have initially said Spencer showed up earlier bleeding from her nose, but changed the story to say she was bleeding from her mouth. 

According to the affidavit, Spencer’s boyfriend said they got into an argument over her injury. He allegedly said that during the argument, Spencer had a seizure, fell and struck a nearby table. 

He told investigators that Spencer became a bit aggressive, but he did not hit her. He also is said to have told investigators that Spencer got a towel to clean up, and she put the towel over her mouth. 

He allegedly told investigators that Spencer stole his eyeglasses and wallet before leaving the residence. 

The detective wrote in the affidavit that Spencer’s boyfriend initially claimed to have called police, but later said he texted 911 and “nobody cared.”  

The detective also wrote that Spencer’s boyfriend accused her 17-year-old son of being the perpetrator. While initially stating Spencer’s son was in the vehicle when she arrived, the boyfriend later said he never saw Spencer’s son in the vehicle and it was parked too far away. 

Spencer’s son and her father told the detective they were not surprised about the incident. They said Spencer’s boyfriend was violent when he drank alcohol. 

The son told investigators he last spoke with Spencer over the phone about 9 p.m. He said his mother told him she was going to drink with her boyfriend. 

Investigators said there were no 911 calls at that time in the immediate area of the extended-stay property. 

A neighbor of Spencer told investigators that Spencer’s boyfriend knocked on his door about 11:15 p.m. and asked for a towel. 

The detective wrote that the towel was found covered in blood. 

Police arrested Spencer’s boyfriend on domestic assault and battery complaints. 

Further investigation revealed a pattern of alleged domestic violence. 

Investigators say Spencer and her boyfriend lived at the extended-stay property for about two days before the alleged altercation. Before living there, they lived in the 2300 block of SW 33. 

From Jan. 1, 2024, to Feb. 2 this year, there were 22 calls for 911 service, with 14 of those labeled as “domestic,” according to police. Seven calls resulted in medical responses. 

Several times, Spencer told 911 operators her boyfriend was drinking and she had been assaulted. Online court records don’t show charges related to those allegations. 

The detective wrote that body camera footage from a Nov. 25 incident showed Spencer with an apparent injury to her mouth and blood on her shirt collar. 

Jan. 17 body camera footage apparently showed Spencer unresponsive, then later informing police her boyfriend had hit her. 

On Jan. 30, Spencer called EMSA and said her boyfriend was drunk and threatened to kill her, according to the affidavit. 

Medical staff told investigators Spencer had significant trauma and damage to her trachea, showing she was strangled. The alleged strangulation caused a lack of blood flow to Spencer’s head, which required her to be placed on life support, medical staff said. 

Investigators are seeking a first-degree murder charge against Spencer’s boyfriend. 

Orginal Source: Josh Dulaney, The Oklahoman