A 52-year-old Baker Act patient was arrested Thursday after reportedly going berserk and injuring an employee the day after returning to The Centers mental health hospital from the Marion County Jail.
Harvey M. Dudley, of 6701 NW 57th Avenue in Ocala, was charged with aggravated battery causing bodily harm or disability. Dudley had just returned to the hospital, located at 5664 SW 60th Ave., after spending a month in jail for a Feb. 18 incident when he allegedly hit a fellow patient with a metal faucet handle wrapped in a towel. He was also arrested in November 2019 after a fight with a roommate.
The victim told a Marion County sheriff’s deputy that Dudley had been acting aggressive by pounding on the door of his room, tearing up a blanket, spitting on the walls and threatening to hit staff members if they approached him, according to the sheriff’s office report.
The victim and some other staff members went into Dudley’s room to give him some medication and Dudley became violent and punched the victim in the mouth. The victim said Dudley then grabbed her in the neck, from the front, with both hands and choked her to the point where her breathing was impaired for a short period of time, the report said.
The victim didn’t pass out at any time, but she did complain of pain in her throat area and her voice was raspy. She did have red marks around her throat that EMS staff said were the preliminary signs of bruising. The victim said Dudley also pulled her hair and grabbed her glasses from her face before she was able to get away, according to the report.
Dudley was arrested and taken back to the jail, where he’s being held on $10,000 bond. He’s scheduled to appear in Marion County Court on April 28.