Girlfriend, boyfriend charged with battery on each other. One left visibly red, black and blue, but how?

WEIRSDALE, Fla. – “A report of a domestic battery” brought sheriff’s deputies to the home of a couple who’d returned from Valentine’s Day out.

The boyfriend, Daniel Alberto Ramos, told the deputies in Florida he and Cristine Luisa Bermudez “were out for the evening and on their way home” when “Cristine grabbed him by the throat and scratched him on the right chest and neck,” their nearly identical arrest reports said. “Upon arriving home, she became belligerent and ended up smacking him in the face.

“Daniel stated he smacked her back and she head-butted him in the mouth area. Daniel stated he tried to leave when she blocked the door and hit him again on the right cheek, along with clawing at him.

“Daniel stated somehow, Cristine slipped and fell face first onto a serving tray, causing her to bleed all over.

“Daniel had a small laceration on the inside of his upper lip, scratches on his right shoulder/armpit area, and nicks of skin on his fingers from what appeared to be scratching marks. Daniel’s knuckles did not show any redness consistent with punching anything.”

Then, deputies reported turning to a “highly intoxicated” Bermudez who said “Daniel punched her in the face three times, causing the damage and contusions to her face.

“Cristine had a puffy nose and a small puncture below her left eye. Cristine also had blood all over her face, arms, hands, and legs. Cristine was transported to the hospital for treatment of her injuries.”

So, who was at fault?

“Based on the totality of the circumstances,” the two arrest reports said, “both subjects were arrested as mutual combatants.”

They were each charged with simple battery domestic violence, a misdemeanor.

Ramos, 29, spent 14 hours behind bars until he was released on his own recognizance.

Bermudez, 35, arrived from the hospital four hours later and wore a gown for her booking photo. She was locked up eight hours until her release, also on her own recognizance.

“The parties are involved in an intimate relationship and reside together as a family,” according to both arrest reports, but Ramos’ report lists a different home address.

That may help, since each of the parties signed a No Victim Contact Order.

Bermudez has one arrest on her record. She was charged with trespass after warning in 2022, and the arrest happened moments after that warning.

The manager of a bar “requested the defendant be trespassed,” a police officer wrote. “I verbally told the defendant she was trespassed from the business, as she refused to provide her name or sign a trespass warning.”

Then, “I warned the defendant she was not authorized, licensed, or invited to be in this premises, and may be arrested if refused to leave or return at any time in the future. The defendant refused to sign the trespass warning and began to walk away.

“The defendant walked over to the sidewalk and then returned, and began to use profanity towards officers present. I gave the defendant several commands to leave the premises and she refused.”

The arrest report did not say why the manager wanted Bermudez trespassed.

Announcement of No Information, Sept. 19, 2022 by Lenny Cohen on Scribd

A month and a half later, prosecutors decided not to pursue the charge, writing, “Evidence legally insufficient to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.”

As for the ride home on Valentine’s night, documents don’t say what specifically sparked the violence or who called deputies.