Police say suspect in assault of wife has PTSD

The Las Vegas man facing attempted murder charges after a Saturday barricade situation in the northwest valley suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and threatened to attack his wife on previous occasions, an arrest report shows.

Michael Frensley, 29, was diagnosed with PTSD shortly after serving in the U.S. Army, the Metropolitan Police Department report said. He has been married for nine years and the couple has three children; she is pregnant with their fourth.

Frensley’s wife and children moved in with her parents shortly before the barricade incident, after Michael Frensley had behaved erratically, the report said.

About 1:30 p.m. Saturday, his wife went to the home she and her husband previously shared, in the area of Rebecca Road and West El Campo Grande Avenue, to retrieve belongings. Her husband attacked and choked her until she was nearly unconscious, the report said.

Frensley told his wife that he would let her live if she helped him kill himself, the report said. She escaped after he retrieved a gun.

Frensley’s wife, her face bruised and mouth bloodied, approached people on the street, begging them to call for help, the report said. Police were called and responded.

Michael Frensley barricaded himself and fired two shots inside the residence. After three hours, he left the house and was taken into custody. Police found several suicide notes he had written.

Frensley faces charges of attempted murder, domestic battery by strangulation and resisting public officials with a firearm.

Contact Dana Rutkin at drutkin@ reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0381. Follow @Danadrutkin on Twitter.