ALFRED — A former University of New England student has been found guilty of criminal restraint and domestic violence assault.

After a few hours of deliberation Thursday evening, a jury found Nicholas Norton, 20, of Massachusetts, guilty of criminal restraint and domestic violence assault, according to Daria Bishop, mother of victim Summer Bishop. He was found not guilty on two additional charges of aggravated assault.

The charges stem from an incident at the University of New England’s campus in Biddeford in April of 2017.

Summer Bishop testified at York County Superior Court on Thursday that on April 30, 2017, she feared for her life when she was attacked by Norton, who at the time was her boyfriend, in his dormitory room.

Bishop is from Vermont and is now a junior at the University of New England, studying marine biology. She testified to a jury that Norton shoved her to the floor, put his hands over her nose and mouth, shoved his fingers down her throat and attempted to strangle her.

Norton told a much different story, stating that although the two were bickering, the fighting did not get physical, and he was helping Bishop care for a nosebleed that she had when she entered his room.

Bishop told the jury that she and Norton had gone out on April 29, 2017, to attend a concert on campus and socialize with friends. As the clock ticked past midnight, into April 30, Bishop decided that she wanted to go back to Siena Hall, where she and Norton lived in separate rooms.

“I was tired, and I was hungry and I really wanted pizza,” said Bishop.

Bishop said Norton gave her his identification card and room key and she went into the building while he went off to smoke a cigarette.

Bishop said it took her a few minutes before she saw the text from Norton asking to let him in the building , and when she went down to the door, someone else was letting him in the building

Bishop said Norton was mad at her for taking too long to get to the front door of the residence hall, and he was still angry when they went upstairs to his dorm room.

“He continued to call me a dumb bitch because I took too long to do things,” she said.

She said she didn’t want to deal with him calling her names any more so she decided to leave his room. She said she took a bottle of vodka from his refrigerator because she was concerned he might drink excessively.

Bishop said Norton took the bottle of vodka from her bag and put it back in the refrigerator. She said he shoved her to the floor and something to the effect of “You’re not going anywhere.’”

She said she was scared as he grabbed her by the shoulders and slammed her on the floor. “I was saying things like ‘let me go, let me get up,” she said.

Bishop said Norton told her to be quiet and put his hands on her nose and mouth and his fingers down her throat and up her nose.

“I was really scared and I couldn’t breath,” she said in court on Thursday, her voice shaking with emotion. “I started to get really panicked that I wasn’t going to get out.”

Bishop said Norton put his hands on her throat and she flailed her arms, trying to make noise.

“I kept thinking if someone doesn’t hear me, I’m going to die right now,” she said.

Bishop said Norton got off her when the dormitory’s residential advisor knocked on the door. Bishop fled the room and went to the residential advisor’s room.

Bishop was taken by ambulance to Southern Maine Health Care, where she was diagnosed with a concussion.

The jury was shown pictures that Bishop took of her bloodied face while at her residential advisor’s room, as well as a photo showing irritation of her uvula, which hangs at the back of the throat.

Bishop said she had bruises on her face and arms, her throat was purple and swollen and she had petechia — red and purple spots caused by lack of oxygen — all over her face. Bishop said she has been diagnosed with post-concussion syndrome and she still has frequent headaches.

In court on Thursday, Norton said that he and Bishop came home to the dormitory on April 30 because Bishop wasn’t feeling well and was hungry and she wanted to get pizza.

Norton said Bishop didn’t have her identification card which was needed to get into the residence hall, so he gave her his card and room key while he went off campus to smoke a cigarette.

Norton said he texted Bishop a couple of times to let him in the building and it took “a little while” for her to respond and someone else let him in as she was approaching the front door.

He said he was wearing a short-sleeved shirt and shorts and he was “a little annoyed” by her delay in response because he was cold.

Norton said he went to his room and Bishop arrived about five minutes or so later with a bloody nose. Norton said he had recently taken Bishop to a walk-in clinic where she was diagnosed with a sinus infection. He said he attempted to help her stop the bleeding, and the two continued “bickering back and forth.”

Norton said he was pinching Bishop’s nose with a napkin as she tilted her head back.

He said Bishop was having some difficulty breathing and wanted him to stop pinching her nose. “To get my attention, she may have said, let me go, or something like that,” he said.

Bishop’s nose was still bleeding, though it was more under control. Biishop got fed up with the arguing, and she went into his refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of vodka, said Norton.

Norton said he got between Bishop and the door and put his arms out in front of him so his hands were touching her.

“I attempted to stop her from leaving with my property,” he said.

Norton said Bishop was crying and yelling, “Let me out,” and he told her to be quiet because he didn’t want them to get in trouble for having alcohol.

Norton said though the two were arguing verbally, he did not physically hurt Bishop.

Both criminal restraint and domestic violence assault are Class D crimes, and are each punishable with up to a year in jail and a $2,000 fine. The two counts of aggravated assault, which Norton was found not guilty of, are more serious charges and would have carried a higher potential sentence.

Daria Bishop was at a loss of words after hearing the jury’s verdict on Thursday night.

“I’m in complete shock,” she said, of the news that the jury did not find Norton guilty of the two counts of aggravated assault.

“She was traumatized. She didn’t think she’d make it out alive,” she said. “I thought there would be justice. I’m pretty devastated right now.”

Norton will be sentenced at a later date.

— Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 325 or egotthelf@journaltribune.com.