Woman beaten, locked in storage unit

AUSTIN (KXAN) - A woman was left to suffer for two days in a storage unit after having her leg broken and head smashed into the concrete, and police are searching for the man they said caused the injuries.

According to an arrest affidavit released Friday, a homeless woman was visiting Jack Orin Avery at a storage unit Feb. 24 at the Public Storage facility near U.S. Highway 183 and Lamar Boulevard. Avery, 51, had a relationship with the woman and may have been living out of the unit, the warrant said.

The woman told officers Avery became angry when he thought she was cheating on him and smashed her head against the concrete as many as 18 times before throwing her down and breaking the bone in her thigh.

Emergency help was not called until two days later, the affidavit said.

Police said they are still investigating, but Avery has been charged with aggravated assault with serious bodily injury.

The managers of the Public Storage facility were not available when contacted for comment and it is still unknown who finally notified authorities to free the woman and get her medical attention.

Richard Troxell with House the Homeless said that many times homeless people who are unable to get into shelter’s have to resort to alternative means such as storage units.

“We are talking about the need to have safe decent affordable housing and it is not available at the wage people are being paid,” said Troxell. “So people are looking for alternatives and sometimes they are not the best alternatives.”

House the Homeless prints and distributes white cards containing a list of shelters and services for the homeless.