A Fort McCoy man with two prior battery convictions is back behind bars for allegedly giving a woman a black eye and scratching her neck.
Thomas P. Werner, 39, was arrested Tuesday morning and charged with felony domestic battery (second or subsequent offense). A criminal history search shows Werner was convicted of battery in Taylor County in March 2012 and in Levy County in October 2018. Department of Corrections records show he was released from state prison in June of last year.
A Marion County sheriff’s deputy observed the victim’s left eye was black and she had fresh scratch marks on the left side of her neck. The victim initially told the deputy the marks on her neck were caused by “woods riding” and weren’t caused by Werner. She said the black eye also wasn’t caused by him and she didn’t want him arrested, according to the sheriff’s office report.
The victim’s mother said her daughter had not been able to contact her over the previous two days due to being blocked online. She said she was able to get another family member to call and talk to her daughter. The victim’s mother responded to her daughter’s residence and saw her neck was scratched and her ear was bright red. She called 911 and waited until law enforcement arrived, the report said.
A Marion County Fire Rescue paramedic said while the victim was being evaluated, she said “he hit me” when questioned about what happened. The paramedic said she saw bruising on the back of the victim’s head in addition to the scratches on her neck, according to the report.
After being read his Miranda rights, Werner said he didn’t know who caused the scratches on the victim or her black eye. He was arrested and taken to the Marion County Jail, where he is being held on $10,000 bond. He’s scheduled to appear in Marion County Court on March 3.