Morgan County teen faces strangulation, child abuse charges in Perry County case

A Morgan County teenager now faces three serious felony charges after Kentucky State Police say a series of alleged acts unfolded in Perry County over four days, from May 8 through May 11. The warrant, filed by Trooper Patrick Bailey, names Anthony Allen Wallace Jr., 18, of Shadypines Road in Elkfork, and lists first-degree strangulation, first-degree criminal abuse involving a child 12 or under, and first-degree stalking.

The case stands out because authorities describe more than one incident, not a single confrontation. That timeline suggests an alleged pattern of behavior in Perry County that drew a formal state police investigation and raised the stakes because a child is identified in the criminal abuse charge. In a county where local public-safety cases can move quickly from complaint to warrant, the allegations now place Wallace before the courts on charges tied to violence, repeated stalking behavior and harm to a juvenile.

Under Kentucky law, first-degree strangulation is a Class C felony. First-degree stalking is a Class D felony. First-degree criminal abuse is a Class B felony when the victim is under 12, a classification that makes the allegation involving a child especially serious. Those charge levels can carry significant prison exposure if the case advances through the Kentucky Court of Justice and prosecutors pursue convictions.

KSP Post 13 in Hazard serves Perry County and routinely handles major investigations in the county, including cases that involve threats to vulnerable victims. Perry County’s 2020 census population was 28,473, while neighboring Morgan County’s population was 13,726, underscoring the small-county setting behind a case that has now crossed county lines in the public record.

For Perry County residents, the charges are a reminder of how quickly stalking and abuse allegations can escalate when they involve repeated incidents and a child victim. The case now moves into the court process, where the warrant, charge classifications and any future testimony will determine how prosecutors present the allegations and how the defense responds.