The office of Cobb County District Attorney Flynn Broady announced that a man was given a 15-year sentence in Superior Court yesterday after being convicted of domestic abuse for the second time.

Cobb Superior Court Judge C. LaTain Kell said during sentencing, “These are the types of crimes that simply cannot be tolerated.”

The public information release described the incident and sentencing as follows:

A Cobb jury quickly convicted Witmos Douglas Madziva, 56, of aggravated battery and battery on Wednesday. The charges stem from the morning of Aug. 21, 2018, when Madziva woke his wife up at their home on Chapel Hill Court by slamming their bedroom door and yelling at her about their children. She tried to hide in her daughter’s bedroom, but Madziva pounded on the door, demanding her car keys. She tried to open the door slightly and hand him the keys, hoping he would leave, but he grabbed her by the hand, specifically her thumb, and began twisting her thumb to get her out of the room and to get to her cell phone, to keep her from calling police. He told her that he was going to kill her and chop off her hands. He was trying to push and pull her into their bedroom when she was able to push him back, and he fell down the stairs. She took that opportunity to escape and ran barefoot, in her nightgown, down the street, where she found a FedEx driver who let her use his phone to call Cobb County Police. At trial, the woman testified about how the Defendant has abused her both verbally and physically for years.

“This woman found the courage to stand up to her husband of more than 30 years and tell the truth about the years of torment she suffered from him. She also worked two jobs to support the family because the Defendant refused to contribute toward expenses, insisting that was her responsibility,” said Senior Assistant District Attorney Dave Williamson, who prosecuted the case along with Assistant District Attorney Donna Merrell. “This jury’s verdict sends a message. In Cobb County, there is accountability for domestic violence.”

This was Madziva’s second conviction for abusing his wife. He will serve five years in prison, ten years on probation, and is forbidden to have contact with his victim for the duration of the sentence.