Brittany Moulton survived the February 2025 assault and watched jurors convict the man she once loved.

DOTHAN, Ala. — A Houston County judge sentenced Latarius Mylik Dale to life in prison after jurors convicted him of first-degree domestic violence in a claw hammer attack that left his former girlfriend, Brittany Moulton, with lasting head and eye injuries.

The May 21 sentence closed the trial phase of a case that began with a violent attack inside Moulton’s Houston County home in February 2025. Prosecutors said Dale broke into the home in Lovetown and beat Moulton with a claw hammer after their relationship ended and she cut off contact. The sentence carries the possibility of parole, leaving future review to Alabama’s parole process.

Moulton was in court when the verdict was returned and when Dale learned his punishment. WTVY reported that she became visibly emotional as the decision was read. Afterward, Moulton said justice had been served. She also said she wanted her story to stand for other victims. The courtroom moment followed months of recovery for Moulton, who had been flown to UAB Hospital in Birmingham after the attack and spent 14 days there. Judge Steensland imposed the life sentence even though Dale had no prior felony convictions, according to local reporting.

The assault followed a breakup that Moulton said became final in November 2024. She said she told Dale she was not coming back, then blocked him so he could no longer reach her. In her account, Dale reacted to the loss of access and control. Moulton said Dale knew the relationship was over. Prosecutors described the attack as a home invasion and beating, saying Dale entered the house dressed in black and struck Moulton more than two dozen times in the face, head and chest. Investigators said she was left near death.

Moulton later described the first sounds she heard that night as two footsteps inside the home. She said she saw a dark figure before the attack. She recalled yelling after the first blow, then being hit again in the same area before she lost consciousness. When she woke, she was on the floor and badly hurt. She made her way outside and crossed to a neighbor’s yard, but the neighbor did not answer the door. Moulton collapsed in the front yard and was found the next morning.

The injuries changed her daily life. Moulton has said doctors placed a metal plate inside her head and that she was sewn from ear to ear. She also suffered a torn retina in her right eye and has said she cannot see from that eye. Her scars became part of the public account of the case after she spoke with local television before the trial. She said doctors told her recovery could take a year or longer. The attack left physical wounds and a long medical record that became central to the case against Dale.

The case also carried a prior domestic violence history. Dale was arrested in 2023 on a third-degree domestic violence charge tied to another alleged incident involving Moulton. That charge was a misdemeanor and did not carry prison time. Moulton later asked a judge to dismiss it. She said she told the judge that she and Dale were raising children together and that she believed they would work things out one day. By late 2024, she said, she had ended the relationship for good. At trial, jurors were asked to weigh the attack, the injuries and the circumstances leading up to the beating. The first-degree domestic violence conviction reflected the severity of the assault and the use of a weapon. Dale’s sentencing came one week after the guilty verdict. Local reports did not list a scheduled appeal hearing or parole date. Dale will remain in prison unless a later parole decision or court action changes his status.

The case drew attention across the Wiregrass region because Moulton survived after reaching help without being able to see from one eye and while suffering severe head wounds. Her account gave jurors and the public a clear timeline: a breakup in November 2024, blocked contact, an attack in February 2025, hospitalization in Birmingham and a conviction in May 2026. Officials did not publicly identify any other suspects. The criminal case centered on Dale’s conduct and Moulton’s survival.

Moulton has said the sentence brought a measure of closure, though it did not undo the injuries. She said she would continue speaking about what happened to her. Dale’s life sentence with possible parole remains the controlling outcome as of June 21, 2026.

Author note: Last updated June 21, 2026.