A ranting 52-year-old man found himself behind bars Monday after a nasty scuffle with one of his roommates.
Marion County sheriff’s deputies responded to a residence in the 6700 block of NW 57th Avenue, where they spoke with the man who had called for help. He said he heard two of his roommates fighting but didn’t actually see the battle. He said it sounded like a verbal altercation between 52-year-old Harvey M. Dudley and the other roommate had turned physical, a Marion County sheriff’s report says.
Deputies spoke with the victim, who was “extremely irritable.” He claimed Dudley had punched him in the face and kicked him when he was on the ground, the report says.
Deputies observed a scratch and bruise on the bridge of the victim’s nose where he said Dudley had punched him and a knot on the right side of his forehead. The victim said he wanted to press charges against Dudley and continued to “escalate his behavior,” clenching his fists and saying that he didn’t “want to be in this world anymore,” the report says, adding that he eventually was taken into custody under a Baker Act.
Dudley, who was ranting “about irrelevant things” and not making any sense, was arrested and transported to the Marion County Jail, where he was charged with battery. He was being held on $1,000 bond and is due in court on Dec. 27 at 8:30 a.m. to answer to the charge.