OCEAN CITY — A Parkville man was arrested on first-degree assault and other serious charges last weekend after allegedly beating his girlfriend to the point she needed staples to close a two-inch gash in her head.
Last Sunday, an Ocean City Police Department (OCPD) officer responded to a hotel at 21st Street for a reported disorderly individual in the front lobby. Upon arrival, the officer met with a hotel staffer who told police there was a female victim covered in blood in the stairwell to the parking garage. The hotel employee told police the victim was covered in blood and was crying and would not move.
The officer located the female victim, who refused to give the officer any information regarding her name, what had happened to her or even if she was staying at the hotel, according to police reports. She became even more upset when Ocean City EMS arrived on scene.
After several minutes, the victim told police, “he was mad because he thought I was talking to other guys, but I wasn’t,” and “he didn’t give me a chance to explain because he was so mad,” according to police reports. The suspect was identified as Neal Herrell, 34, the victim’s boyfriend. The victim told police she had known Herrell since high school and they had been dating for several months.
Officers located Herrell, who denied being with the victim in the hotel, but then stated he did not know where she went. Herrell told the officers he did not know how the victim was injured. Another officer continued to interview the victim, who told police Herrell had assaulted her by pushing her, which caused her injuries.
The hotel employee told police the couple had arrived back at the hotel in separate cabs with Herrell running after her. The employee said Herrell came down to the lobby a short time later with a woman’s purse. Not long after that, the victim came down to the hotel bleeding extensively, according to police reports.
The victim was transported to the hospital for treatment of a two-inch gash in her head that required several staples to close. Based on the evidence and the severity of the victim’s injury and the amount of blood, Herrell was arrested and charged with first-degree assault.
A subsequent search of Herrell’s truck in the parking garage turned up marijuana in various containers and a glass smoking device and additional drug possession charges were tacked on.
