A couple’s argument over how to celebrate Christmas probably made the discussion a moot point after a North Carolina man slammed his new girlfriend to the pavement along Interstate 85.
According to a Commerce Police Department arrest report, William Smith Raymond, 58, of 1509 Kenmere, Asheville, NC, faces battery charges from the dispute.
Police responded to the northbound exit ramp at Maysville Road after getting numerous calls about a man dragging a woman across the pavement. They found a 44-year-old white female lying in a ditch and bleeding profusely from her knees.
While one officer was seeking EMS assistance for the woman, another officer interviewed Raymond, who said they argued about Christmas plans, and the discussion turned to her family, whereupon he informed the woman that her kids did not like her because she was a bad mother.
Raymond said the woman threw hot coffee on him as they traveled back to North Carolina. As he pulled off onto the exit ramp, Raymond said, the woman jumped out of the vehicle, ran about 30 feet and fell, whereupon he went to help her.
The woman’s version of events was similar — up to the point where she ran off. She told the officer that he chased her, grabbed her by the scarf and jerked her to the ground. She said she got up and tried to run, whereupon Raymond picked her up and slammed her to the asphalt, then grabbed her by her feet, dragged her off the pavement and sat on her back to keep her down.
The victim told police that the two met on Match.com, and she moved in with Raymond about a month earlier. The match did not seem to be working too well, as the victim told police that Raymond consistently said things to her to make her feel bad about herself. Also, she said, Raymond’s ex-wife told her she’d had similar experiences.
