KANSAS CITY, Mo.  —  A judge declared a mistrial Friday after a jury was unable to reach a verdict in the case of a man accused of shoving a cell phone down his girlfriend's throat.

After a half-day of deliberations, the jury said it was hopelessly deadlocked.

Marlon Brando Gill, 24, was charged with assaulting Melinda Abell, 25, during an argument in December. He denied the charge, claiming instead that she tried to swallow the phone to prevent him from finding out whom she had been calling.

Abell testified that she had been drinking that evening and did not remember how the phone ended up lodged in her throat. An emergency room doctor had to remove it.

Prosecutors had no immediate comment on whether they would retry the case.