Lorain Councilman Cory Shawver arrested on domestic violence charge

LORAIN — A Lorain City councilman was arrested on domestic violence charges Tuesday. Cory Shawver, D-7th Ward, was booked into Lorain County Jail on a domestic violence charge stemming from a Dec. 15 incident between him and his wife, Haley Breanna Bock-Nielsen. He posted the $2,500 bond shortly after his arrest. Bock-Nielsen filed for a civil protection order after an altercation between the two about 2 a.m. Dec. 14. In her filing, she alleged Shawver locked her out of their bedroom. After she pounded on the door, she says he opened it and put his hands on either side of her head, slamming the back of her head into the door jamb and wall before grabbing her by the neck. He then went into their home office and destroyed Bock-Nielsen's phone, computer and family photos, according to the filing. The filing indicates she ran out of their West 11th Street home and walked about 1.5 miles to the Lorain Police Department to file a report. In the report, taken by Officer Isaiah Taylor, Bock-Nielsen told police she and her family went out for dinner and drinks for her brother's birthday, then continued to drink at their home until about 1:30 a.m., when Shawver took his in-laws home. When he returned, she told police he went to bed and locked the door. She told police she used her hand and hairbrush to make a hole in the bedroom door to unlock it. Officers then spoke to Shawver, who said his wife and in-laws "got hammered" and woke him up to take his in-laws home because he was sober. When he returned, his wife allegedly "became mean" after he refused to have sex with her, so he locked himself in the bedroom. He then told officers Bock-Nielsen chopped a hole into the door with a pair of scissors, then threw the scissors in his direction. The pair argued, with both of them destroying things in their shared home office, according to Shawver. Due to the pair's conflicting statements, the report was forwarded to the prosecutor's office for review, according to the police report. In an email, Shawver declined to comment on the advice of his attorney. City Democratic Chairman Paul Adams did not return a request for comment. Council President Joel Arredondo said the situation is unfortunate, but there is nothing City Council can do. City Council rules of decorum only apply to members' conduct while in Council Chambers. "We don't have any procedures in place," Arredondo said. "He's innocent until proven guilty like everybody else, so at the proper time if any comments are to be made it will be then. Right now it's just unfortunate that an incident occurred." Shawver and his wife were married in May. Shawver has served on Lorain City Council since 2019. Contact Carissa Woytach at (440) 329-7245 or cwoytach@chroniclet.com.