Man Granted Pretrial Diversion in Felony Dating Violence Case
Prosecutors with the Eighth Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s Office (SAO8) granted Brian Joseph Fischbach, 44, a pretrial diversion in his felony dating violence case.
On April 17, 2025, police arrested Fischbach on a warrant for a dating violence incident that occurred in October 2024.
According to the arrest report, Fischbach and the victim were in an argument about their relationship status. The victim tried to end the argument by getting ready for bed and attempted to reach around Fischbach to get her belongings. Fischbach reportedly “became upset" by this and responded by grabbing the victim and holding her to the ground. Fischbach held the victim’s mouth shut while on top of her.
The victim managed to free herself but Fischbach began chasing her, grabbing her arm as she tried to escape. Fischbach snatched the victim’s phone and threw it away from her, but she was able to escape to a business and report the incident to 911.
The victim had visible injuries after the attack.
Fischbach was released on a $100,000 bond for charges of false imprisonment and domestic battery by strangulation.
On June 17, 2026, Assistant State Attorney Nicole Reed signed a pretrial intervention agreement with Fischbach and his attorney. Under the agreement, SAO8 will likely dismiss the case in 18 months if Fischbach does not contact the victim and completes a batterers intervention program, among other conditions. As part of the agreement, Fischbach admitted to his charged conduct.
In 2019, Fischbach was arrested and charged for an alleged similar incident in which he reportedly held the victim down on a bed after taking her phone and car keys so she could not call 911 or leave. She said she tried to scream but Fischbach pushed her face into the bed or covered her mouth. The victim said the altercation lasted three hours, with Fischbach holding her down whenever she tried to get up. The victim did not want to prosecute and SAO8 later dropped the case citing a lack of evidence.
