An 84-year-old Villager was jailed late Tuesday afternoon after a nasty altercation with an oxygen-dependent lady friend at his home in the Village of Springdale.
Marion County sheriff’s deputies were called to a Designer Home on SE 92nd Grantham Terrace shortly before 5 p.m. and when they arrived, they found the victim in distress on the floor inside the residence. Deputies reported that she appeared to have trouble breathing so EMS was called to the home.
Deputies then spoke with 84-year-old Robert A. Rosner, who said he had gotten into a confrontation with the victim about her oxygen tank. Rosner, who originally is from New Jersey, said the woman “has no friends in the community” and spontaneously uttered that he was “sorry” for what he had done, a sheriff’s office report states.
When asked to clarify what he meant, Rosner admitted to grabbing the woman by her shoulders and throwing her to the ground. He said the victim had not attacked him or touched him in any way, the report says.
The victim, who was “visibly distraught” after speaking with medical personnel, said Rosner is bipolar and has frequent mood swings. She claimed he had grabbed her and thrown her to the ground before she “frantically” attempted to call 911, the report says.
The victim also told deputies that Rosner grabbed her oxygen line and “clinched it tight around her neck,” which caused her to have trouble breathing but didn’t close off her airway. She said it wasn’t the first time he had gotten violent with her, the report says, noting that deputies didn’t see any visible injuries on the victim’s body.
Rosner was then placed under arrest and transported to the Marion County Jail, where he told deputies he “lost it” on the woman and “should not have done what he did.” He also admitted to grabbing her oxygen line in a way that cinched it around her neck while she was on the ground, the report says.
Rosner was charged with domestic battery by strangulation. He was released Thursday on his own recognizance and is due in court on Jan. 14 at 9 a.m. to answer to the charge.
