Athens man indicted for allegedly raping wife

By Joe Johnson

A 35-year-old Athens man has been indicted for allegedly raping his wife during a domestic violence incident earlier this year.

In addition to rape, Gregory McKinley Mulligan was charged with two counts of aggravated assault, family violence battery, and possession of a controlled substance, according to the indictment filed last month in Superior Court.

Police said that the incident happened on March 10th at the couple’s home on Marlin Street, where officers responded on reports by neighbors of hearing gunfire.

The 46-year-old victim told the officers that she and her husband had been arguing when Mulligan punched her in the face, and threw her to the ground, where he choked and raped her.

The woman tried calling for help but Mulligan grabbed away the phone and threw her to the ground again.

She was eventually able to call her son, police said, and when he arrived Mulligan met him outside and pointed a pistol at him.

The victim’s son then pulled out his own gun and fired in self-defense, sending a round just above Mulligan’s head.

Mulligan retreated back into the house then fled through a side door into the woods, where officers later found and arrested him.

Police said that while searching the house for Mulligan’s gun officers found marijuana and methamphetamine.

Anyone who is in an abusive relationship can seek advice and support services by calling Project Safe's 24-hour hotline at (706) 543-3331, or by visiting http://www.project-safe.org