A 36-year-old woman is facing two felony charges after deputies say she kicked a Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office deputy in the groin while resisting arrest outside a downtown Lake Worth Beach bar early Thursday. Monika Wiener was booked into the county jail on charges of battery on a law enforcement officer, resisting an officer with violence, and resisting an officer without violence, according to court records.
Deputies were called to Igot's Martiki Bar at 702 Lake Avenue after reports that a woman was throwing objects and punching people, according to the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office. As WTVX reports, deputies located Wiener sitting at a table outside the bar, matching the description given by the original caller. Igot's Martiki Bar is a neighborhood live-music venue along Lake Avenue, the commercial and nightlife spine of downtown Lake Worth Beach.
Struggle Escalated From Seated Detention to Patrol Car
According to the arrest report, Wiener was lawfully detained and instructed to remain seated, but she instead attempted to leave despite deputies' commands. The report states she then resisted deputies' efforts to detain and arrest her by trying to walk away and using physical force against them, prompting deputies to handcuff her.
The confrontation intensified when deputies tried to place Wiener inside a marked patrol vehicle. The station's report notes she braced her feet against the door to keep from being loaded inside, and as a deputy attempted to shut the rear passenger door, the arrest report states she kicked him in the groin.
Booked After Hospital Clearance
Wiener was first taken to PBSO District 14 headquarters, the sheriff's office's operational hub for Lake Worth Beach, before being transported to a local hospital for medical clearance. She was ultimately booked into the Palm Beach County Main Detention Center, the 2,156-bed county jail on Gun Club Road in West Palm Beach, per the same account.
Because Lake Worth Beach contracts its municipal policing directly to the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office through District 14, PBSO deputies — rather than a separate city police force — are the ones who respond to disturbances along the Lake Avenue corridor, a strip lined with bars and late-night entertainment venues.
What the Felony Charges Could Mean
Under Florida Statute § 784.07(2)(b), battery on a law enforcement officer elevates what would otherwise be simple battery to a third-degree felony, carrying up to five years in state prison, five years of probation, and a $5,000 fine. Resisting an officer with violence, charged under Florida Statute § 843.02, is likewise a third-degree felony with up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine, and prosecutors must prove the suspect knowingly opposed an officer carrying out a lawful duty. The additional misdemeanor count of resisting without violence carries a maximum of one year in county jail and a $1,000 fine.
To convict Wiener of battery on a law enforcement officer, prosecutors would need to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that she intentionally touched or struck the deputy, knew he was law enforcement, and that he was actively performing lawful duties at the time — a standard defense attorneys in these cases often contest by challenging whether the officer's actions were lawful.
The case follows a broader pattern seen elsewhere in Palm Beach County this year. In June, a West Palm Beach police officer was arrested and charged with the identical pairing of felony battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting with violence after a physical altercation with deputies during a medical evaluation, as Hoodline previously reported. It remains unclear whether body-worn camera footage captured Wiener's struggle near the patrol vehicle, and her current bond status has not been detailed in available records.
