Court records show Cedar Rapids homicide victim sought multiple court orders

Petitions for protective orders reveal a history of stalking, physical abuse and harassment by Shawn Crowley, who is accused of killing his wife Monday.

Court records show the victim, Chantele Crowley, 39, asked the court for multiple protective orders starting in 2009. Some were ordered by the court and others were dismissed because the couple requested dismissal before the case went to trial.

The latest petition was filed in May when the couple lived at different addresses, which was a pattern over the years. They were living together in a mobile home, 1808 Eastern Dr. SW, Lot 41, where police found Chantele Crowley's body Monday during a welfare check requested by a family member.

According to the criminal complaint, Shawn Crowley admitted to several witnesses that he killed his wife and turned himself in to police Monday night. The complaint said it appeared Chantele Crowley was strangled, and a cellphone charging cord was found near her body. An autopsy is pending.

Shawn Crowley, 43, was charged Tuesday with first-degree murder and remains in the Linn County Jail on a $1 million cash or surety bond. He appeared from the jail wearing a padded vest.

Chantele Crowley's death is the eighth homicide in Cedar Rapids this year and third domestic homicide case, records show.

In a petition filed in May, Chantele Crowley said her husband had threatened suicide, saying he had nothing left to lose. She had left him, but he continued to follow and stalk her, her roommate and her friends.

She also claimed in the petition that he slashed her car tires May 9, and he continued to text and call her.

In an 'attempt to control' her, he also threatened damage to the apartment he lived in, which was in her name.

In the petition, she stated her husband had assaulted her in the past, throwing a salad bowl at her, hitting her in the head and then pushing her by her throat into the TV before throwing her to the ground. At other times, he threatened to send 'adult' photos of her to family and friends.

Chantele Crowley's aunt, Mary Covert of Franklin Park, Ill., said during a phone interview Tuesday that Shawn Crowley had 'psychological' issues and she knew he had hurt her niece over the years.

She thought the couple had broken up, but the pair attended Chantele's grandfather's funeral, which was about two weeks ago.

Covert said the family tried to 'intervene on many, many occasions.'

According to the petition, Chantele Crowley was afraid of Shawn Crowley's retribution. In the past, she would leave him, and one time he placed an ad on Craigslist 'soliciting me for others to come find me and have sex with me.'

In the petition, Chantele also stated she went back to her husband in the past to 'prevent his anger' and defuse him 'since police couldn't help.'

Tara Beck, program director of domestic violence victims services at Waypoint in Cedar Rapids, said it is common for domestic violence victims to seek protective orders and then drop them, similar to what Chantele Crowley did.

Stalking, which Chantele mentioned more than once, can be a warning sign of more escalating behavior to physical violence, Beck said.

'We see a lot of women who are fearful they (the abuser) will seriously assault them and kill them,' Beck said.

Waypoint offers free and confidential services, and the crisis line can be accessed 24 hours a day at 1-(800) 208-0388.

Gazette reporter Lee Hermiston contributed to this report.