family disturbance leads to an aggravated battery arrest Sunday, when father and son arguments lead to violence. Cheyenne Cody Free, 30, Milton, was found walking down a driveway carrying a shovel in his right hand after dispatch was called. Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office reports said Free told deputies he’d called 911 after his father threatened to burn down their home. Free said he hit his father in the back with the shovel to stop him. Free said his father was drinking and an argument ensued and later overheard his father say he would burn the house down. Free said he followed his father outside and picked up the shovel when his father picked up a gas can. Free told deputies his father turned to him and told him he was going to burn the house down; Free then tried to snatch the can away from his father’s hand but was unsuccessful. Free told deputies he then hit his father in the back with the shovel and called dispatch.
Deputies found the father sitting at the edge of some bushes. The father told deputies he was tired of Free having a free ride and he had no intention of burning his house down. Deputies report a large red abrasion on the left side of the father’s back below his shoulder where he was struck, but refused to fill out a written statement to the incident. Free was charged with aggravated battery using a deadly weapon and taken to the Santa Rosa County Jail and released on $5,000 bond.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Father and son dispute leads to arrest