Crystal Danae Commander, 41, of Welaka was arrested Sept. 21 and charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon after a woman with extensive bruising was found at a Palatka hotel, according to the Palatka Daily News. The charge followed a reported confrontation the previous day at a Crescent City elementary school; the accounts described to a deputy differed on how the fight began and what object Commander held.
The newspaper reported that a deputy went to the Sleep Inn and Suites on Sept. 17 and found the woman with substantial bruising and swelling to her face and other injuries. She told the deputy that Commander hit her while she did not fight back, using an Allen tool. The woman said a male associate took her to his home afterward and later arranged a hotel stay; she said he advised her not to contact law enforcement.
Accounts to the deputy differed
The male associate described the episode as a verbal dispute that turned physical and said Commander struck the woman twice, the Palatka Daily News reported. He also said he cleaned the interior of his truck after the fight. Commander, speaking with the deputy after waiving her rights, acknowledged fighting with the woman and said she punched her twice while holding keys; she claimed the woman had pushed her out of a vehicle.
The newspaper reported that the woman wanted to press charges and provided a bloodied shirt to the deputy. These accounts are allegations reported from the investigation; the arrest and charge do not establish guilt. The available information does not resolve the differing descriptions of the confrontation or establish how the object allegedly used would be classified under the law.
The deadly-weapon question is fact-specific
In a 2009 opinion, the Florida Fourth District Court of Appeal described the then-applicable aggravated-battery statute as covering great bodily harm or use of a deadly weapon, with the offense classified as a second-degree felony. In a separate 2005 case, the same court upheld a deadly-weapon finding involving a blowgun that fired sharp darts and noted that the assessment depends on the circumstances and the object's capability for use, as explained in its opinion. Neither decision determines whether an Allen tool would qualify in Commander’s case.
The Palatka Daily News reported that as of 2 p.m. Sept. 22, Commander remained in Putnam County Jail on a $25,000 bond.
