A man reportedly grabbed at an Ocala Police officer’s groin area during a scuffle while being arrested on charges of trying to break into a house.
Michael Dean Kelly, 40, of Ocala was charged with attempted burglary of an occupied residence and battery on a law enforcement officer after the incident, which happened shortly before 3 a.m. Sunday at a home on NE 46th Road. He’s being held on $2,000 bond in the Marion County Jail.
The homeowner told an officer he heard a large bang coming from his front door. He checked his security video feed on his cell phone and saw a white male – later identified as Kelly – wearing a ball cap, dark colored t-shirt and shorts pulling on the front door handle in an effort to open it, according to the police report.
The officer observed a copy of the video and the subject matched the description of Kelly, who was located by another officer arriving on the scene. In the video, Kelly opened the exterior door, grabbed the front door handle and pulled it back and forth while making growling sounds. He shook the door to the point where his cap fell off his head and the curtains on the inside of the front window were dislodged, according to the report.
The video then showed Kelly proceeding to the garage, where he grabbed the garage door handle and attempted to lift the garage door numerous times to gain entry. The homeowner told the officer he didn’t know Kelly and had never seen him before, according to the report.
While the officer was interviewing the homeowner, he saw Kelly resisting another officer and a struggle ensue. Kelly was eventually detained in handcuffs and leg restraints before being taken to jail, according to the report.
The officer involved in the altercation reported that when he attempted to place Kelly in handcuffs, Kelly tried to strike him with his left elbow. The officer said he deflected the strike and took Kelly to the ground, and Kelly then grabbed his groin area, causing him pain, before being subdued, according to the report.
In an interview with officers at the jail, Kelly said the point of going to the residence was to gain entry into the home, but he didn’t know what he was going to do once inside. Kelly said he has ADHD and was “tripping.” When asked what kind of narcotics he takes, Kelly said he takes Adderall but didn’t know whether he was still on it, according to the report.