A Whidbey Island man and a woman are facing felony assault charges after they assaulted each other and caused injuries, according to court documents.

Jordan D. Winchester, 40, and Stefany J. Cornett, 25, both of Langley, made their preliminary appearances in Island County Superior Court Feb. 23. Judge Vickie Churchill found probable cause to believe they both committed the crime of assault in the second degree.

Cornett had black eyes from being assaulted. Deputy Prosecutor Ian Michels-Slettvet said jail officials asked that she be released on electronic home monitoring. She had a CT scan at the hospital and has to have followup visits to the doctor because of the severity of her injuries.

Giving her medical care would strain the resources of the jail, Michels-Slettvet said. Churchill agreed to allow her to be released from jail to a home where she can be monitored electronically.

Michels-Slettvet asked that Winchester’s bail be set at $20,000. He said it was “a particularly brutal assault.”

“I don’t want to think of what could have happened if law enforcement hadn’t arrived when they arrived,” he said.

He also said Winchester missed a hearing in district court earlier in the year.

His attorney argued that her client should be released on his personal recognizance because he has family in the area and is worried about losing his job.

Churchill set Winchester’s bail at $20,000.

Deputies responded to a report of gun shots at a home in rural Langley, though no evidence of gunfire was found. They went into the home and saw Winchester hitting and kicking Cornett. They ordered him to stop, which he eventually did. Cornett told deputies that he had choked her three times and punched and kicked her.

Winchester said Cornett started the fight by hitting him on the head with a frying pan. He was bleeding from the side of the head.

Winchester and Cornett had dated in the past, but were just roommates with other people in the same home.

Editor’s note: After further investigation, the prosecutor’s office declined to charge Cornett in connection with the incident.

Photo by Jessie Stensland / Whidbey News Group Langley resident Jordan Winchester makes his preliminary appearance with an attorney in court Friday on suspicion of assaulting a woman.