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Tuesday, April 23, 2024

Villages bartender denies hitting man – but video shows otherwise

Jacqueline Michelle Clark

A bartender who works at a Villages restaurant was arrested Tuesday evening on a domestic battery charge after she was caught on video allegedly hitting a man several times in a domestic altercation.

Jacqueline Michelle Clark, 35, of SE 44th Court in Summerfield, admitted to Marion County sheriff’s deputies that she took a cigarette out of the victim’s hand but denied hitting him. She said she was upset because she hadn’t seen the victim in two weeks because of an upcoming court appearance.

The victim told deputies he had a neighbor come to the residence with him while he gathered belongings in case something happened between Clark and him. Video footage captured by the witness from his car showed the victim on the phone with 911 while an upset Clark was throwing what appeared to be mail out of a vehicle, a sheriff’s office.

Clark then got out of the car and hit the victim on the back with a plastic hanger before walking away, then returned and smacked him in the back of the head with an open hand, the report says.

The victim said he didn’t have any injuries or need medical attention and provided a written statement.

Clark was released on her own recognizance from the Marion County Jail on Thursday and awaits a Feb. 19 date in Marion County Court.