Two sisters were arrested after an alleged attack on a Villager who suggested it was time to put down a dog.
Officers were called at about 12:30 p.m. Wednesday to a home on the Historic Side of The Villages where a man said he had been attacked by 61-year-old Mardel Elizabeth Coven and 59-year-old Melissa Ann Coven, according to an arrest report from the Lady Lake Police Department.
Officers found the 69-year-old man “in the back bedroom on his knees having trouble standing up.” He said their Rottweiler had collapsed in the front yard and he began to argue with the sisters after he suggested it might be time to have the dog put down.
His suggestion ignited a family fracas, which included him being choked. The report noted that “everyone had been drinking” and they were “intoxicated.”
The sisters were sitting on the front porch when police arrived at the home. Melissa Ann Coven cooperated with police and was taken into custody on a felony charge of domestic battery involving a victim over the age of 65 and a misdemeanor charge of simple battery.
Mardel Elizabeth Coven did not cooperate, became “hostile” and kicked an officer in the leg several times. An officer used a taser and delivered a drive stun to get her to cooperate.
“That felt good,” she said and began to laugh.
She is facing felony charges of domestic battery involving a victim over the age of 65 and battery on a law enforcement officer. She is also facing misdemeanor charges of simply battery and resisting arrest. She was booked at the jail on $8,500 bond.
