An Izard County woman is facing two felony charges following an altercation with her son in front of the laundromat in Melbourne.
According to an affidavit from the Izard County Sheriff’s Department filed Aug. 30, on Aug. 27 Sergeant Mike Smith received a call stating Vanessa Rigsbee, 36, had been in a physical altercation with a fourteen-year-old juvenile male.
When arriving at the home of the caller who was present with the victim, Smith noted a distinct line around the front and sides of the victims neck as well as an abrasion on his left shoulder.
When asked what happened, the victim said he was with Rigsbee when the two got into a verbal altercation which then escalated after the victim refused to give Rigsbee his cell phone.
The two were in a two door vehicle with the victim seated in the back and Rigsbee in the front.
After refusing to hand over his cell phone, Rigsbee climbed into the back seat of the vehicle from the front and grabbed ahold of the teens shirt pulling the collar tightly against his neck.
As the altercation continued, the teen broke free and ran a short distance across the parking lot before falling to the ground and having an asthma attack.
The following day, Rigsbee was interviewed by investigator Tyler Webb at the Izard County Sheriff’s Department.
Rigsbee stated she had grabbed the boys shirt but said she was trying to calm him down. She denied the teen had fallen and lost consciousness when running from the vehicle.
Later that day, a witness was interviewed and stated she saw Rigsbee and the victim in an argument “acting like fools”. She saw Rigsbee in the back seat screaming at the victim and when the victim attempted to exit the vehicle, she saw Rigsbee grab the victims shirt.
After escaping, the victim ran a short distance and “collapsed”.
The witness went to help the victim and said his eyes were open but he was having extreme difficulty breathing. She noted Rigsbee did not exit the vehicle to check on the teen but rather continued to yell from the vehicle.
Rigsbee has been charged with aggravated assault on a family or household member, a class D felony and endangering the welfare of a minor in the first degree, a class D felony.
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