Man on parole for 1993 slaying sentenced to 15 years for choking Naperville woman

A Chicago man who was on parole for murder when he choked his ex-girlfriend to unconsciousness in her Naperville home is headed back to prison.

DuPage County Judge Brian Telander sentenced Michael Spivey, 48, to 15 years in prison Tuesday for the "extremely violent attack," that left the victim convinced she was going to die.

Telander convicted Spivey on two counts of aggravated domestic battery during an April bench trial.

Telander said Spivey faced a maximum sentence of 30 years as a result of his "horrendous criminal history," which includes a 1993 first-degree murder conviction in Cook County and other crimes.

Spivey was released in 2016 after serving 20 years of a 45-year sentence.

Prosecutors said Spivey went to the woman's Milton Drive home on March 24, 2018, after she refused to answer his telephone calls. When she wouldn't open the door, Spivey threatened to damage her car with a tire iron from his own vehicle.

She eventually let him in and, after he took a pair of his boots from the home, Spivey turned and began choking her.

In an order of protection filed in the case, the victim wrote that Spivey repeatedly told her she was going to die during the attack.

During Spivey's trial, the victim's son testified that he discovered his mother gasping for air and holding her throat as Spivey ran out the door.

Spivey was arrested in Naperville a short time later and has been held in DuPage County jail on $100,000 bail since.

While in jail, prosecutors allege Spivey repeatedly violated a noncontact order that prohibited him from having contact with the victim.

In court Tuesday, prosecutors played portions of more than 1,000 calls Spivey made to the victim since June 6, 2018.

During the calls, Spivey both threatened the victim if she cooperated with prosecutors and came to court and promised to "never choke (her) again."

"You attempted to get her not to come to court, and you did that over and over," Telander said. "You were extremely persistent in trying to obstruct justice."

Spivey must serve 85% of the sentence before being eligible for parole.