Press Release

Karl Marx Thomas Sentenced to 15 Years for Strangling His Girlfriend

December 19, 2025

(Anchorage, AK) – Today, Judge Superior Court Jack McKenna sentenced Karl Marx Thomas, 41, to 15 years in jail for strangling his girlfriend to unconsciousness in December 2023, after she called police seeking help to leave their shared Eagle River residence. During the assault, Thomas caused an orbital hemorrhage, broke her nose, and left her with more than 50 other injuries, catalogued by forensic nurses.

Last June, an Anchorage jury convicted Thomas of Assault in the First Degree, Assault in the Second Degree, two counts of Assault in the Third Degree, and two counts of Assault in the Fourth Degree. At the time of his conduct in 2023, Thomas was on probation in a case involving similar conduct with a different live-in girlfriend.  Judge McKenna revoked his probation and imposed the remaining jail time in his probation case, 16 months.  In all, Thomas will serve 16 years and 4 months in jail.  None of this sentence will be suspended. 

Following his June conviction, Thomas was immediately remanded.

This case was investigated by Anchorage Police Department’s Domestic Violence Unit, prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Ashley D. McGraw and Assistant District Attorney Malone Van Wieren, and supported by Paralegals Christiana Peter and Tanna Severson.  

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Department Media Contact: Information Officer Sam Curtis at sam.curtis@alaska.gov or (907) 269-6269.

Due to resource constraints, we no longer post links to referenced records. Records filed in a federal court are readily available at Docket Search or PACER, and records filed in a State of Alaska court are readily available from the Alaska Court System (Trial Courts - Alaska Court System and Search for an Appellate Case). Contact Sam Curtis to request a referenced record that is not readily available from a court or on the internet, or contact law.recordsrequest@alaska.gov to submit a formal Alaska Public Records Act request.