Marion County Man Attacks Wife, Smears Booger During Bizarre Domestic Incident

A Marion County man was jailed after deputies say a domestic dispute spiraled into an hours-long ordeal involving thrown dirt, a broken television, and a booger used as a weapon.

According to the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, 48-year-old Chad Owen Maxwell was arrested after deputies were called twice in one night to the same residence on Oct. 13 and 14. The report says Maxwell and his wife began arguing outside the home, where the situation quickly turned physical.

Investigators say Maxwell struck his wife, then snatched her cellphone from her back pocket and threw dirt into her face. When she tried to leave, he allegedly took a water bottle from her other pocket and splashed her with it. Once inside, deputies said the victim reported that Maxwell shoved her head into a wall hard enough to leave a noticeable bump on her scalp. He also kicked her in the calf, causing her to favor her right leg.

The argument continued into the bedroom, where things took a strange turn. The victim told deputies she was crying on the bed when Maxwell noticed some of her mucus had gotten on his side of the bed. In retaliation, he allegedly picked his nose and wiped a booger on her arm.

As the encounter continued, Maxwell reportedly turned on a flashlight, pressed it close enough to her eye that it touched her eyelashes, and made comments about how much heat it was giving off. Deputies said he held it there for about eight seconds.

Later, the victim told investigators Maxwell threw her into a large chest freezer near the front door, then grabbed her arms and threw her into the door as she tried to stand up. He eventually stormed out—only to return, throw a gummy ring at her face, and smash the couple’s wall-mounted TV, cutting his hand in the process. Deputies noted blood on the victim’s arm and on a mirror in the room.

When Maxwell left a second time, the victim locked the doors, but deputies say he returned again and used a ladder to climb through a window. Hiding in a closet, the victim told investigators she heard him inside saying, “I know you’re in here.” He then allegedly used his laptop to access her Google account, triggering her phone to play a sound in an attempt to find her location.

Deputies later located Maxwell and took him into custody. He was booked into the Marion County Jail on two counts of domestic battery and one count of unauthorized access of an electronic device endangering human life, a felony. He was held without bond.