Warsaw Woman Faces Battery Charges
Staff Report
WARSAW — A Warsaw woman was arrested after injuring a police officer and slapping her relative.
Donalee Howard, 57, 403 N. Washington St., Warsaw, is charged with battery resulting in bodily injury to a public safety officer, a level 5 felony; and domestic battery, a class A misdemeanor.
On Nov. 30, a Warsaw Police officer responded to a domestic dispute at a residence. Upon arrival, the officer discovered Howard was at the home. One of Howard’s relatives said that Howard was intoxicated and had been intoxicated for the last four days.
According to court documents, the relative said she and Howard were arguing when Howard allegedly slapped her on the right side of her face. The relative told the officer that after Howard slapped her, she punched Howard in the face. Howard then kicked her relative, causing her to fall to the ground.
While the officer was at the home, she saw Howard reach for an open can of beer on her dresser multiple times. When the officer asked Howard to not drink anymore, Howard said, “You can’t tell me that I can’t drink my beer” and grabbed the beer again.
Howard refused to walk to the officer’s car and sat on the floor, saying she couldn’t walk because she was too drunk. As the officer attempted to take her into custody, Howard pulled away and tried to get out of handcuffs. She also squeezed the officer’s hand and dug her fingernails in, causing a laceration on the officer’s hand.
When at the Kosciusko County Jail, a portable breath test from Howard registered at .277 BrAC.
Howard has been released on bond. She has an initial hearing at 11 a.m. Monday, Dec. 27.