Man to appear in district court for battery charge
An El Dorado man is expected to appear today in 35th Judicial District Court on a felony battery charge for allegedly stabbing a woman in the leg.
Rubert D. Merritt, Jr., 51, of the 1400 block of Champagnolle Road, was arrested Saturday on a charge of second-degree battery.
Officers were called at 10:44 p.m. to a residence in the 1400 block of Bock in reference to a possible stabbing.
The 40-year-old victim told officers that she believed Merritt, an acquaintance, had cut her with a pocketknife.
Police said the woman had a small puncture wound on her right thigh, noting that the wound was still open.
She told officers that Merritt had come to her residence to make amends for “stealing from her in the past.”
He then said he was “going to take her dog,” and when she told him he could not take the dog, he grabbed her by the arms and threatened “to take her.”
The woman said she pushed Merritt away and he stabbed her with what she believed was a pocketknife, noting that she did not see the knife.
The woman said she then ran inside her residence and Merritt left the area on foot.
She said she had gone to Medical Center of South Arkansas following the incident but left before being treated due to a long wait in the Emergency
Room.
Police said she complained of “a lot of pain” in her leg. An ambulance was summoned to the scene and she was transported to MCSA for treatment.
A police report did not indicate that the woman sustained any serious injuries.
Police located Merritt at his residence and he reportedly told them that he had been home “all night.”
His wife told officers that Merritt left the residence at approximately 8:30 p.m. to walk to the store and he returned 20 minutes later.
Merritt was then taken into custody, according to a police report.