EDGARD — A St. John the Baptist Parish man is spending the rest of his life in prison following his conviction late last year for attacking and strangling his ex-girlfriend to the point of unconsciousness.

Judge Sterling Snowdy sentenced Henri Lyles Feb. 13 to imprisonment for the remainder of his life without probation, parole or suspension of sentence following his aggravated battery conviction, according to District Attorney Bridget A. Dinvaut’s office.

Snowdy handed down the penalty as part of a habitual offender sentence sought by Dinvaut’s office.

A six-person St. John Parish jury convicted Lyles in November following a two-day trial before Snowdy.

Authorities said Lyles, 44, of LaPlace attacked a former girlfriend in her home with a thirteen-inch knife Feb. 1, 2015. The victim suffered cuts to her fingers defending herself against the knife, requiring medical attention.

During the attack, according to authorities, Lyles strangled the victim to the point she briefly lost consciousness and lost control of her body.

The victim’s two children were present in the house during the attack.

Lyles was apprehended shortly after the attack.

“The St. John Parish District Attorney’s office will prosecute to the fullest extent provided under the law violent criminals and individuals who demonstrate little or no regard for human life,” a release from the D.A.’s office said.

“As such, District Attorney Bridget Dinvaut charged Lyles as a habitual offender because of his prior criminal history.”

According to the D.A.’s office, Lyles pleaded guilty to cocaine distribution in Jefferson Parish and was sentenced to five years probation in 1991.

In 2003, an Orleans Parish grand jury indicted Lyles for second degree murder following the stabbing death of a man in Algiers.

Lyles pleaded guilty to manslaughter in that case, the D.A.’s office said, and was sentenced to ten years in prison.

He was released prior to the end of his sentence and placed on parole.

Lyles’ parole supervision ended in 2013.