photo by: Chris Conde/Journal-World

Yusaf Austin appears at a hearing on Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023, in Douglas County District Court.

A Lawrence man pleaded guilty on Wednesday in Douglas County District Court to three felonies in connection with a series of violent domestic abuse incidents in which he reportedly punched, cut and dragged a woman by her hair. As part of a plea agreement, the state dismissed numerous other charges.

The man, Yusaf Ali Austin, 50, was charged with 12 felonies, including two counts of aggravated battery, one count of aggravated burglary, one count of tampering with a GPS tracking device, three counts of criminal threat, five counts of felony domestic battery, and misdemeanor counts of violating a protective order, criminal damage and obstruction, as the Journal-World reported.

On Wednesday he pleaded guilty to one count of attempted aggravated battery, one count of aggravated battery and one count of criminal threat, all felonies. The charges relate to incidents in February and March of 2021. The state had consolidated five domestic violence cases into one because the incidents occurred in such a short period, according to court records.

Judge Sally Pokorny accepted Austin’s plea and advised him that he faces between 33 and 66 months, or nearly three years to 5.5 years, in prison depending on his criminal record.

According to court records, Austin has felony convictions in Douglas County for attempted battery on a law enforcement officer and obstruction from 2018, and aggravated assault in 1993. He was convicted of felony aggravated battery in Johnson County in 2007.

Pokorny scheduled Austin to be sentenced on Dec. 15. Austin has been in custody since May 2021 and is being held on a $100,000 cash or surety bond.