A Pennsylvania man was arrested for battery after allegedly hitting his girlfriend while visiting her family in Leesburg.
Officers responded to a disturbance at a residence, located at 45 Ginger Cr., around 10 p.m. Christmas Eve, according to an arrest report from the Leesburg Police Department.
Upon arrival, an officer met with 38-year-old Baseal Marquis Shuler in the street in front of the residence. He advised that he got into a verbal altercation with his girlfriend and her family. He was from Pennsylvania and in Florida visiting his girlfriend’s family, the report said.
While at the residence, Shuler left in the rental vehicle he and his girlfriend used to get to FL. He returned and got into a verbal altercation with his girlfriend in the front yard regarding where he went in the vehicle. His girlfriend’s sister and her boyfriend came outside during this time. They asked for his keys, and the sister’s boyfriend grabbed him by his jacket. Shuler did not want to cause a physical altercation and left the residence on foot before contacting law enforcement, the report said.
An officer stayed with Shuler while another met with the other party at the residence. The officer started by speaking to the sister’s boyfriend, the first witness, independently in the living room. He stated Shuler left the residence between 7 and 8 p.m. in the rental vehicle without telling anyone. They tried contacting him over the phone, but he did not respond, the report said.
Shuler returned to the residence intoxicated between 9 and 10 p.m. From where the witness was inside the residence, he could hear Shuler arguing with who he assumed was his girlfriend’s sister, the victim. The witness walked outside and saw Shuler was indeed arguing with the victim, the report said.
The situation escalated as they got louder standing in the front yard. Shuler and the victim were arguing within close proximity, at which time Shuler struck her in the face. The witness heard a sound but was unable to see clearly due to there being limited lighting in the front yard, so he was unsure if it was with an open or closed hand. It sounded like it was with an open hand based off the noise, the report said.
Seeing this, the witness intervened and got in between the two of them. As he did so, Shuler swung and struck him on his lip. The officer observed him to redness and a small laceration to the bottom right side of his lip, the report said.
The witness was unphased by the physical battery and focused on keeping distance between Shuler and the victim. After separating, Shuler left the property on foot, saying he was going to contact law enforcement. The witness followed Shuler as he began to walk into the street and tried to calm him down, the report said.
The witness also wanted to find alternate ways to get Shuler home safely to PA. When he failed to get Shuler to calm down, he went back home and tried to calm the victim, the report said.
The officer proceeded to interview the victim on the back porch of the residence. She advised that she got into a verbal altercation with Shuler about where he went in the rental vehicle prior to returning to the residence. She also said he never struck her, the report said.
While speaking to the victim, the officer tried to find any physical evidence on her face but was unable to see any marks or bruising, the report said. She was unwilling to cooperate and did not wish to complete a sworn written statement or allow him to photograph her for evidence. Prior to speaking to her sister, the officer asked if her sister would say that Shuler did not strike her. She replied, “She’s going to say what she wants.”
The officer moved on to the victim’s sister who stated her family was visiting from PA, and she paid for a rental to get them down here safely. After eating dinner, the rental and Shuler were no longer at the residence. She contacted him over the phone, and he returned to the residence, the report said.
Shuler then began arguing with the victim, during which he struck her in the face with an open hand. The sister retrieved the rental car keys and walked back inside the residence. Before she went inside, she saw Shuler contacting law enforcement, the report said.
Due to Shuler and the victim living together in PA as a family unit for the last year, the incident was enhanced to domestic in nature, the report said.
Shuler was subsequently arrested on charge of simple battery (domestic). He was transported to Lake County Jail and released after posting $1,000 bond.