Okay. Do you remember about how many times he hit you in the face? >> He hit me so much in the head. I can't remember anything. >> I feel like I have a concussion, but I don't. >> And I'm afraid to even say this part because last time we talked about it, the first battery charges that got dropped, she attacked me first. She's a very uh offensive uh woman. >> Okay. On February 21st, 2024, police were called to a quiet neighborhood for what was described as a domestic dispute. Neighbors watched in disbelief as a young man turned violent, shattering windows, slashing tires, and lashing out at a woman who tried to shield herself. Even when bystanders stepped in, pulling the two apart, he wasn't finished. >> Who did this? Baby 119 got one running. Get on the ground. 19 location going northbound. very fast. >> I'm sorry. [Music] [Applause] >> You're an idiot. >> I'm leaving my mom. How old are you? >> I just had a mama. >> Running from officers is one of the most foolish mistakes a suspect can make. In the US, fleeing from law enforcement can lead to additional charges such as resisting arrest, evading police, or obstruction of justice depending on the state. For him, it only made matters worse. Any hope of sympathy or leniency vanished the moment he tried to escape. Stand by. >> Hey Dan, can I get my hand please? Floyd. >> I got my grab that thing. Let's grab that case. >> All right, have a seat. >> Sit down. >> Jesus Christ. I got to do paperwork on you. Get in there. It's all right. >> I have the mail detained in my vehicle. Be back out of the original caller's address. >> You get my inhaler. >> What do you need an inhaler for? Why are you running if you need an inhaler? >> Asthma. >> Asthma? You having an attack right now? >> Yeah. >> All right. EMS. My 1012 also needs an ambulance. He has asthma and is having an attack. >> I'm peing myself for some reason. I don't know why. >> I got an ambulance coming for you. Just kind of concentrate on breathing. >> Everything's getting black. >> It's because you've been running, man. >> You're an adult. You don't need your mom. >> No. >> As he sat in the back of the patrol car, he began trying to appear vulnerable, even claiming he had blacked out and didn't realize what he was doing. But no one was buying it. The officers had to get the full account of what had transpired. And just then, his mother finally emerged, standing right where the car was parked. with her boyfriend but my son unfortunately. >> And I say I didn't mean to say unfortunately but I'm not just not changing and I've literally told her to leave leave and she won't listen to me right here. again. >> Oh, that's >> Yeah. >> And listen, if they freaking look at his biological, he has felonies, misdemeanor, he has everything. So, I mean, if y'all would actually look at the whole picture here, >> just suicide nine times. Like, literally just happened. Just got out of jail. >> I mean, I'm just like, did y'all witness anything that happened? No, they just got here like 10 minutes. The guy right there in the blue, >> I see the man right there at the stop sign. He saw the whole thing. And thank you, Jesus. He called you guys to figure this out cuz here Anna's crying. She doesn't know what to do. I'm on a call at work. I worked from home, obviously. >> All right, give me a minute. Let me talk to her. Okay. Officers discovered he had been adopted only a few years earlier, carrying with him a long trail of mental health struggles, repeated suicide attempts, and behavior that many would consider dangerous. For a moment, there may have been room for sympathy. But that brief pity disappeared the instant the officer turned his attention toward the young woman standing nearby, his girlfriend. >> Sorry, ma'am. >> I'm Deputy Widens. Okay. Um, I got to try to figure out what's going on. Okay. Okay, we are going to have EMS come check you out cuz you're clearly very injured. Okay, just have a seat. Um, you're safe. Everything is all right. What's that? >> Okay, just take a couple deep breaths for me. Okay, just in and out. Okay, I know a lot's going on right now and I'm going to try to figure out what all happened today. Okay. >> The sight of her swollen, bruised face left the officer momentarily speechless. But as her eyes moved from the injuries to the woman's car, the truth became harder to ignore. The damage to both was undeniable. This wasn't a case of just a fight that had gone too far. Everything about the scene screamed of a longer, more troubling history, one marked by abuse, fear, and control. >> Um, I know she said you guys just got here, right? Okay. Where were you coming from? Do you remember? >> We were we were from >> um we were coming from Wilderness Landing. We were sleeping out >> and then we got into a fight and they called the cops >> at Wilderness Landing. Okay. >> And he got in the driver's seat. He either either I got in the car and he drove off with me or he was going to take my car and drive off and I wasn't going to have any service. >> Okay. Um, so I I hopped in and I I just took a chance. I literally haven't been able to drive my car. He's been taking over >> since you left Wilderness Landing. Okay. Where is the that located? Do you do you know the street? >> Uh, it's right off of Noman and Riley out in Lake Baker. >> Okay. If you look up Wilderness Landing Park, it's a free camping. >> The pair had abandoned their families and homes. Determined to carve out their own life together, the victim's car became their shelter, where they camped overnight, traveled aimlessly by day, and lived without boundaries. At first, it might have seemed like an adventure. But what appeared to be a carefree getaway quickly became less of a life on the road and more of a prison on wheels. And the further officers looked, the more disturbing the details became. >> I I noticed that you have injuries on your face. You have, you know, a black eye. Your cheek is swollen. Um, how did you get those injuries? >> The black eye was a couple days ago. My busted lip was last night and my cheek was today. >> Okay. Was that while you guys were in the vehicle? >> It was at my my cheek was right then and there at the corner when one of the neighbors literally ripped him out of the car because he was hitting me >> inside the vehicle. >> I locked myself in the car. I got out and he starts stabbing my tires and he starts destroying my windshield and trying to get in, trying to unlock the door. He finally unlocks the door and he hops in and starts punching me. He pulls the E bra on and I can't put it down. Okay. Um, so he said he did that to your windshield. Did you have um a mirror here? >> He destroyed that last night and my tail light. He did your tail light last night or today? >> Last night. >> Okay. Um, so your lip it looks like it's bleeding. Is that from when he was punching you in the vehicle? >> It was last night before before they closed the car. >> Okay. Um, so your swollen cheek is from today. Okay. Okay. >> It became painfully clear that this wasn't an isolated incident. The abuse stretched far back and the victim had been living in fear of him for some time. If the neighbor hadn't intervened at the moment they did, the girl's condition could have been far more devastating, if not fatal. And that's not just speculation. It's backed by grim statistics. One in three women report experiencing severe physical violence at the hands of an intimate partner. Out of those cases, nearly 34% end in death. The numbers get even darker when looking at younger victims. Among teens killed by an intimate partner, up to 90% are girls. Now, let's not forget she herself was only a teenager and those statistics speak louder than words. >> He was threatening to stab himself in the chest the whole way. >> Okay. Um and that was from the fight. >> He's extremely suicidal. He kept telling me over and over, we've been on and off for almost 3 years. Okay. >> Um he his biggest threat is he's going to kill himself if I leave. >> And we've broken up before and we got back together after a month. I was really just trying to go back home. I kept telling him, "Let me just take take my things and just leave." >> When were you guys stopped down there? Is that how the >> He pulled the E bra and probably almost They wouldn't let me drive it. They wouldn't let me do anything. I couldn't leave. Did you see what he was stabbing the tires with? >> Kitchen knife. >> A kitchen knife. Okay. Was that already in the vehicle? >> Does he normally carry a knife on him? >> Yeah. Okay. Um and you saw him stabbing the tires. Okay. >> While his mother insisted that he struggled with instability and suicidal tendencies, the officer saw something else. He wasn't suicidal in the sense of wanting to end his life. He wielded those threats as a tool of control. They were designed to trap his girlfriend, keeping her from walking away. Without family members to step in or provide support, she was left to endure the cycle of manipulation and escalating physical abuse alone. >> And then how did you get to here? >> So we were >> I got it. >> Yeah, I got it. We were over by Pace High School. Um, and we had gotten cops called at the Wilderness Landing. >> Okay. >> We were trying to figure out where we wanted to go and what we wanted to do and I said, "Well, why why don't you let me drive? You haven't slept, you know, why don't you close your eyes for a little bit? I've slept a couple hours." Cuz we've literally been driving around all night. >> He just had court. He already had a case with you. Um, what happened last night when the deputies were called? >> Uh, we drove off. I never spoke to them. >> Okay. So, you left before they got there? >> Um, yesterday was a court case for battery for you as the victim. >> Yeah. And uh, Chris. >> Okay. Are you guys um, living together at the tent site? >> We were, but not anymore. The suspect's control over his girlfriend ran so deep that she often pulled him out of legal consequences herself. It was a textbook display of manipulation by false promises. According to US law, his actions could have carried a sentence of up to 20 years on charges of felony domestic violence or aggravated assault. But her trust and his manipulation kept him safe from the consequences. Still, protection like that cannot last forever. His fate was preparing to catch up. >> Okay. >> My name's Nick. I'm a paramedic. >> What happens? >> Yeah. Okay. Did you lose consciousness at all? >> I don't remember. >> I don't remember what you said. >> I know something ran. >> I thought you were just screaming for your mom. >> Yeah, that that was going on. >> That's kind of weird to do. >> What do you mean? I don't know. >> 21. While the girlfriend received first aid from EMS, the suspect sat handcuffed in the back of the patrol car. The officers then turned their attention to the one person whose quick thinking had made all the difference. His version of events were crucial to help piece together the truth of what had exactly unfolded. >> This is the gentleman that seen at first kind of interven pulled up right at the corner right there and I saw him kind of he was using his elbows and hands and feet on the windshield. Okay. >> I think he shattered it with his elbow >> and then she was in the car and then at that point I was already kind of getting out and I saw her or saw her and her head kind of went into the the driver's side window and that's when I hit me. >> Okay. So she was in the driver's seat at the time that she was hit. Um do you remember was it like a closed fist like a punch or a slap or you just >> It had to be a closed fist. Her head recoiled but I didn't see it. >> Okay. So you saw the motion of him like swinging at her arms. I just saw the one kid that that got her pretty solid at that point. >> Okay. Do you remember um was the door open or closed at that point? >> Okay. Um the passenger door was like cracked open. >> Okay. Um and then was he standing outside of the vehicle? Do you remember? Or was he inside like on top of her? >> Okay. >> The neighbor's account aligned perfectly with what the girlfriend had already told officers. He had witnessed the abuse unfold firsthand, leaving little room for doubt. The truth was clear enough on its own, but the officer knew the job wasn't finished. There were still smaller details to sort through, connections to be made, and a full picture to assemble. >> I'm just going to ask you a couple questions, okay? Do you remember about how many times he hit you in the face? >> He's hit me so much in the head, I can't remember anything. Okay. >> I feel like I have a concussion, but I don't know. Okay. Do you remember if he lost consciousness? >> I did this morning um when he busted my lip when we left the campsite. He was upset because I started yelling at him. He was getting mad and frustrated because I wasn't helping him pack. I was worried about the animals and trying to keep them in the car. And he kept screaming at me and yelling at me. And then he started destroying my car and he broke my driver's side mirror. >> Give me one minute, please. >> He broke my driver's side mirror. Um, he broke my my mirror up top and >> I saw it on the ground. That was in at the campsite. Okay. How was my mirror leaving? We're finishing packing up. >> There was simply no valid reason for the conflict to explode the way it did. It was just fueled by the suspect's own unchecked rage. and the poor girl became the target of it all. After hearing her describe the ordeal, it was shocking she was still conscious at all. Her injuries were severe and every mark on her body served as a warning that she remained in critical need of care. >> And you got so upset that you just started punching me and I just screaming about everything. >> Hey sweetie. Don't want to interrupt, but >> with getting hit like that and everything's going all >> you need to go to the hospital. Your mom's coming. She can get the dogs for the test. >> She's not going to take my car. She's not going to take my animals. >> I mean, if we explain the situation, >> I don't want to go to the hospital. >> I mean, your your car is not going anywhere. It's not going to be it's not drivable. So, either you're going to go home with your mom, you know, it's going to have to stay here. You can get it towed to your mom's house, but right now, I mean, there's no reason to not go. I mean, especially with you getting hit. They can document it. Oh, thank you. >> And you sit there and you don't go and then you end up dying. You know, people, like I say, people, you know, you got the adrenaline going right now. You got hit. You know, there's a lot more that could be going on. So, and like I said, they they can document all this bruising, all this stuff. >> And you can't see what's going on inside. >> Yeah. I mean, they need they probably need to scan your head to make sure. Okay. You can have internal injuries that you can't see or feel. >> Can I wait until my mom gets here? >> Help. Where is she coming from? >> Okay. >> By this point, the officer had gathered all the facts she needed. Still, protocol required her to hear the suspect's side of the story. Up to now, he had been sitting in the back of the patrol car, crying out for his mother, behaving erratically and perhaps hoping that if he acted unstable enough, he might avoid the consequences. But this time, there was no escape. >> What happened between you and your girlfriend today? >> Um, so we've both been on drugs and she becomes very violent and antagonizing. >> Okay. >> And we just had an event where we were at the campground. Um, I'm trying to think of the name of it. She knows. You'd have to ask her that part. Um, okay. Anyways, this is campground and we've been doing drugs and cuz we were staying out there and it's a lot easier to do out in the woods in the middle of nowhere and we do it on the back roads and stuff and we got to the camp and we were ready to move out that day. This uh this happened before. And um we uh got in a verbal altercation and she started tackling me and hitting me. And so I threw I threw something at her and then No, no, no. I I threw styrofoam freaking plates at her. I took a roll of styrofoam plates cuz she beat the crap out of me and like slammed me on my hip. >> It didn't take long to see the angle he was playing. His entire defense rested on pointing the finger at his girlfriend, insisting she bore just as much responsibility. Yes, he admitted they had both been using drugs, but that didn't change the reality of what happened, nor did it divide accountability. Instead, it revealed how far he was willing to twist the truth. >> I got back up and I hit her with a bag of styrofoam plates that should be in the back of the car still. >> Okay. >> And uh so >> that's okay. Take your time. >> I'm trying to think. It was a really eventful night. Um, so then after after that she started throwing like a she throwing a I think it was a 2x4 and then a a broom pole at me and I dodged the broom pole and uh and that's how that damage to the mirror happened on the car. >> And this was all last night. >> Last night but >> So what happened today? >> No, I've not done yet. >> Oh, okay. >> And then she made me run from the cops >> last night. >> She sent me turn off the lights and run. >> Okay. >> Why is this zapping me? Or is this not bad for you? >> Okay. >> Okay, keep going. >> I know. >> So, we we we got we got to like Alabama for some reason cuz I was driving in the dark and I can't see what I have. Bad eyesight and like half of one eye and a stigmatism also. >> Okay, >> I'm joking. I'm sorry. I got >> That's okay. >> Whether or not the girlfriend had been under the influence remained uncertain, but the suspect clearly was. What he seemed to forget, however, was that this wasn't just her word against his. The neighbor had seen him with his own eyes, shattering the glass earlier that same day. Yet perhaps his years of successfully manipulating his girlfriend had given him a false sense of confidence, making him believe he could pull the same trick on law enforcement. >> So we had all the way from Alabama and on the way back from there is when we started arguing again and she bit me. This not really show anymore. Oh, she bit me at her. Physical altercation altercation. And I'm afraid to even say this part because last time we talked about it, the first battery charges that got dropped. She attacks me first. She's a very uh offensive uh woman. >> Okay. >> I'm on the defense. >> Gotcha. >> I'm string bean. I can't do much. Um and um what was it? So, we we pulled over and we talked about it and we promised we'd never hit each other again. And we were on the way here and I just didn't want to go near people. I wanted to spend all day with her today. I grew up watching my stepdad beat my mom. And I think of him as a monster and I can't live with myself like that. And I told her, I'd like to spend my day with you and by myself. She was going to leave me here. She sat injured, her condition so grave that medical staff feared lasting consequences. Yet clung to his defense, he claimed that bite marks, marks no one could even see, were serious enough to justify the brutal beating. The contrast between her condition and his excuse made his story even more impossible to believe. >> As soon as I did it, I started realizing what I did cuz I I black out whenever I get like that. So, I didn't take my medicine. anxiety and it's almost something. It's depression medicine and I didn't take any of those today. We ain't eating today. So, we were both probably hangry and and she wouldn't let me in the car and >> Yeah. Okay. So, you said um she stopped the vehicle, you got out of the vehicle, and you remember piercing the tire with a knife. >> She started threatening she was going to leave me, and I said, "No, you can't leave me." And she said she I can't remember exactly what she said. That's about when I started freaking out. >> Do you remember what the knife looked like? >> Rainbow. >> It was a rainbow knife. >> It's a 19 not 19 129 titanium uh knife set at Walmart. And it's that pretty oil color. I'm really pants. I'm sorry. >> Okay. I I can't help you with that one, unfortunately. >> I'm just I got you. >> Legal insanity is a very narrow defense. Under US law, simply having a mental illness does not automatically exempt someone from punishment. Numerous people with documented conditions still understand the difference between right and wrong. And there was no doubt he fell into that category. >> Um, okay. So, it was a rainbow knife. Um, after you stabbed the knife, do you remember where you put it? >> It broke. They should have found it by now. It was in the middle of the road. >> You broke it? >> No, it it snapped. >> Oh, okay. Okay. >> I tried stabbing the windshield and it failed. >> You slapped her with your palm. >> No, I >> Okay. >> Not actually like like it was literally your palm right here. >> Okay. >> Right. Right to like right here. >> Okay. So, um how about how many times did you slap her? Do you remember? >> It was one time the crap out of me and bite her bites her worse than anything. >> Okay. Where did she bite you? >> I don't remember. You have to ask her. I don't really remember cuz right after that right after she hit me he ripped me off. >> That's when he took you out. >> He ripped me beat the hell out of me. He hit me in the head about six times. Punch my hands about a bunch more times. Rolling around hit me some more. >> Okay. >> And then I laid on the ground and then I I walked and lent over to the car and I started telling her I was so sorry. I I didn't mean to and I promised that we would never do this again. >> Thank you. Just uh stay tight with him. I'm going to let them know that you're ready to go. blaming his girlfriend wasn't enough for him. Now, the witness, who had only stepped in to stop the fight and call the police, had become his target, too. The funny, or rather absurd part was that if he had suffered the beating, he claimed, he certainly wouldn't be sitting there with barely a scratch on him. His story's exaggeration only highlighted its implausibility. >> So mad at you. >> I just left that there. I'm sorry. [Music] >> So many people love you. I just don't understand. >> Okay. I'm sorry. I got close. I love you. I'm sorry. >> I love you. While the suspect's mother wept as she watched her son being taken into custody, the victim's mother arrived, horrified at the state of her daughter. The physical injuries were only part of the story. The emotional and psychological trauma she had endured was just as profound, leaving scars that no medical treatment could easily heal. >> So, this is um just some resources in case you need it, okay? Um instructions on how to take out an injunction if you need it. However, the judge did issue a no contact situation. Um, however, if you need further protection, um, also some shelters as well, some resources, counseling services, um, domestic violence shelters. Okay. Is >> um, can we do we need to take um, pictures? So, I already took pictures of her vehicle um, and her injuries. >> Okay. Um, so technically speaking, um, are you comfortable with me talking in front of your mom? Okay. Just want to make sure um I know there was an incident that happened in Okaloosa last night into this morning. Um technically speaking, you can file charges there for what happened. Um so he would have the domestic in Okaloosa >> and then he would have domestic in Okaloosa. >> Okay. >> With multiple charges already pending in a growing stack of court cases, the officer couldn't understand how he hadn't been behind bars yet. Determined not to let history repeat itself, she made sure this time no mistakes were made. >> I'm going to do >> this is going to mark it for him cuz literally yesterday was court case. I'm sorry to interrupt. >> Um, do you know the outcome of that? Yesterday >> the charges were dropped. >> Okay. >> Cuz he told me he was going to change and I believed him. >> Okay. So that was requested by you. >> Okay. >> Because he manipulated. >> Um, I did have one more question that just reminded me. Um during the incident that happened in the vehicle here, did were you able to defend him off in any way? Did you um do any strikes, any defensive, anything >> that you can remember? >> I tried shoving him off and my my tiny I don't have any muscle in my bones. The only thing I can do is >> um while he was on top of you, um striking you, do you remember biting him or trying to get him off you? >> Uh he reached over and was trying to get my foot off the brake to have me drive off instead of turning and my foot was staying on the brake. He kept trying to hit the gas uh and turn the wheel and try to get me off. He was trying to push me out of the car room, so I bit his shoulder. And that's when he punched me in the face. And that was after he already sliced your tire, was smashing the windshield. Okay. Okay. That was right when the neighbor came out and literally reached in and yanked him off. Yeah. >> I mean, he literally chucked him out of the car, shut the door, and told me to run. The man was taken to the hospital, medically cleared, and ultimately charged with resisting arrest, property damage, and domestic violence battery. The woman filed an injunction, which he soon violated, leading to a warrant for his arrest. Court records show he was taken into custody on that warrant a month later. Will he ever learn his lesson? Let us know your thoughts below, and don't forget to like and subscribe for more updates. [Music]