A Worthington man arrested last Saturday is accused of the crime of strangulation and battery upon a woman when a juvenile was present. When the woman sought medical treatment for her injuries, it took nine stitches to close a wound to her lip.

Richard “Rick” Terrell Gamble, 52, Worthington, was arrested by Deputy Michael Coy of the Greene County Sheriff's Department last Saturday night, March 25.

There was a domestic altercation going on at Gamble’s residence on North County Road 700 W in the Worthington area when Greene County Dispatch got a call from a juvenile family member, who was not at the residence, who told the dispatcher a sibling who was at the residence had called and said Gamble and his wife were fighting and law enforcement was needed.

Deputy Coy, the investigating officer, was dispatched and when he arrived around 10:40 PM, Officer Skylar Scott of the Jasonville Police Department had already responded to the scene. A woman and a juvenile were outside on the porch and the woman was holding something against her mouth.

Deputy Coy said the woman was very shook up and told him there was an argument and it did not end well for her. She said Gamble grabbed her around the neck and she felt like she was going to pass out. He also grabbed her by the face causing her tooth to lacerate her bottom lip.

The juvenile said Gamble had gotten mad at them and started saying “F--- you” to them so the woman got between the juvenile and Gamble to protect the juvenile. They said the woman grabbed her phone to call 911 but Gamble grabbed her around the neck and pushed her backwards. And then the woman told the juvenile to go to their room. Both of them did go to the bedroom but Gamble followed them and continued pushing the woman. The juvenile then went into the bathroom and called the sibling who called 911.

When Deputy Coy talked to Gamble, he allegedly said one thing leads to another and the argument started during a game with the juvenile but the woman got in his face and things started to escalate. He said they both know how to push each other's buttons and it just keeps escalating into a knock down, drag out.

Gamble said he had an injury to his finger on his right hand and he thought he would have a mark on his back where the woman bit him but he allegedly said it didn't matter, what he did was wrong. But he didn't know how the woman's lip got busted. He allegedly admitted taking the phone from her and that he was probably the one who damaged her lip when he had his hand on her face and he did not intend to injure her. He also admitted putting his hand on her neck but not around it, just in front of it.

Photographs were taken of the woman's injuries.

Gamble was taken into custody and transported to the Greene County Jail where he was booked in at 11:40 PM.

The woman went to the hospital for medical treatment and later told the deputy she had bruising to her neck and collarbone and she required nine stitches to close the wound to her bottom lip.

During a second interview with the woman, she allegedly admitted that she bit Gamble on his back to get him away from the juvenile and that after she and the juvenile went to the bedroom, they could not get the door shut in time before Gamble came in and continued to berate the juvenile. Then after the juvenile made it to the bathroom, Gamble allegedly threw her against the closet door and held her one-handed around her neck until she fell down because she couldn't stand anymore. She said each time she tried to get up he continued to push her down to the floor and smack her in the face. When she got hold of her phone, he allegedly reached around from behind her and grabbed her face hard enough to make her fall to the floor. At that point she was bleeding and Gamble stopped but did not want to let her go to the hospital for treatment.

Gamble's bond was set at $9000 surety with 10% cash allowed. When he posted $900 bond, he was given a court date, signed an agreement to have no contact with the alleged victims and was released on March 26.

Gamble is scheduled to appear in Greene Superior Court on April 6 for his initial hearing on charges of:

• Domestic battery committed in the presence of a child less than 16 years old, a Level 6 felony,

• Strangulation, a Level 6 felony, and

• Interference with the reporting of a crime, a Class A misdemeanor.