A homeless woman who went berserk in the lobby of a Villages hotel found herself behind bars Tuesday night in the Lake County Jail.
Lady Lake Police officers were called to the Comfort Suites at 1202 Avenida Central and when they arrived, they made contact in the front parking lot with 54-year-old Lynda Hashman, who was described as “very anxious.” Officers asked to see Hashman’s identification and she was at first uncooperative before finally providing it, a police report states.
Hashman started yelling at the officers and claimed they were “harassing her and taking the side of the hotel manager.” She continued to scream and demand the names of the officers involved and the opportunity to speak with a supervisor to file a complaint, the report says.
Hashman said she was upset because had been told to the leave the hotel without her money wasn’t being refunded. The officers attempted to explain the Florida State Statute governing hotels and motels, but Hashman continued to yell and talk over them. The officers warned her that if she continued to behave in that manner and disrupt other hotel guests, she would be arrested for disturbing the peace, the report says.
Hashman then claimed she was being threatened and made allegations about police officers in Gainesville in relation to a video she said was altered. She was offered the chance to provide a written statement about the incident at the hotel, but she continued to be argumentative and said she would be filing complaints against the officers. Several guests – some stating on the third floor – called the hotel’s management to complain about the noise, the report says.
Hashman asked officers to provide her a copy of her written statement and she was told she could pick it up at the police station during normal business hours. She wasn’t happy with that response and started yelling at the officers again, so she was placed under arrest for breach of peace, the report says.
As Hashman was being placed in a patrol vehicle, she appeared to hyperventilate and EMS was called. Paramedics checked her out and she was then transported to the Lake County Jail.
While en route to the jail in Tavares, Hashman made several statements about being falsely arrested and wanted to know the charges against her. She also said “karma was going to get” the officer driving her to the jail and promised to file complaints and a lawsuit against the police department, the report says.
Hashman was charged with disturbing the peace and released Wednesday morning on $500 bond. She’s due to answer to the charge in a Lake County courtroom on Oct. 8 at 8 a.m.