A 65-year-old Florida man was arrested this week for battery, months after he was seen on video attacking two women in a church parking lot because he thought they shouldn’t have parked in a handicapped space.
The victims, a 22-year-old woman and her disabled mother who had difficulty walking after a car crash, had come to the St. John Vianney Catholic Church on September 25 to pick up the older woman’s 5-year-old granddaughter, with the daughter coming to provide assistance for her mother, according to a police report on the incident.
John Phillips Charging Affidavit by kc wildmoon on Scribd
The younger woman went into the church to get the child, and while she was securing the girl into her car seat, a black pickup truck pulled across the parking space in front of them, blocking their vehicle.
The women said the driver, later identified as John Phillips, began waving his handicap placard around while still inside his truck. The victim held up her mother’s placard, but Phillips got out of his truck and stormed toward them, yelling that he’d seen her get out of an unrelated vehicle parked next to them and that they were not allowed to use a placard for two vehicles.
The younger woman tried to explain she had nothing to do with the car parked next to them, but Phillips continued yelling that he wasn’t going to let them leave and that he was calling security.
The younger woman stood with the passenger door between her and Phillips, but Phillips shoved the door into her. She said she shoved Phillips, because by that time she was fearful for her mother and niece, and Phillips punched her in the face, knocking her to the ground. She said she got up and hit him back, but he punch her again.
Meanwhile, the older woman got out of the driver’s seat and came around to protect her daughter, and Phillips grabbed her as she tried to get between him and the daughter. She was also calling for help, and staff from the church and others came out. Phillips got back into his truck and fled the scene.
Days later, both victims, who provided the truck’s license plate number, identified Phillips as their attacker in photo lineups. Investigators also viewed surveillance footage that corroborated the women’s story.
The younger woman was taken to the hospital for treatment. Police said she had noticeable bruising on her face. Her mother said she later found bruises on her arms from being grabbed.
Police did not say why Phillips was not arrested until Monday, when he was booked into the Orange County jail on charges of battery, abuse of elderly or disabled adult, and false imprisonment.
Both women signed paperwork to prevent their information from being disseminated, per Florida’s “Marsy’s Law,” but their names were not redacted from the police reports, and multiple news agencies used them.
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[Featured image: John Phillips/Orange County Sheriff’s Office]
