A strike on the head with a goose decoy was just the beginning of an argument that led to Benjamin Cottrell’s arrest.
Columbia police received a call around 2:30 a.m. on Feb. 8. Cotrell, 21, was later arrested for third-degree domestic assault.
Columbia Police Department Spokeswoman Jill Wieneke said Cottrell and his ex-girlfriend were at a party earlier that night at 1412 Rolling Rock Drive.
“She was playing around with a goose decoy and he struck her on the head with it,” Wieneke said.
The victim, 22, told CPD she didn’t think Cottrell intended to hurt her. After being struck, she began feeling nauseated and dizzy and went outside.
When the victim came back inside, Cotrell got up, just inches from her face and started calling her names, Wieneke said. Other party guests intervened and broke up the altercation.
“Some guys at the party pulled him away because they were afraid he might hurt her,” she said.
The victim’s friends proceeded to take her to Boone Hospital, where the dispatched CPD officers met her.
“We didn’t see any visible injuries,” Wieneke said.
After speaking with the victim at the hospital, CPD officers spoke with witnesses at the party. Then, they arrested Cottrell at his 414 Maplewood Drive home.
Cottrell was taken to Boone County Jail where he was released that day on a $1,000 bond, a spokeswoman for the jail confirmed.