A Lake County man was arrested for battery after allegedly hitting his ex-wife when she separated him from their fighting children.
Officers responded to a battery at an undisclosed Leesburg residence around 9:40 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 12, according to an arrest report from the Leesburg Police Department. Upon arrival, the ex-wife of 38-year-old Thomas Ryan Mize advised that he held their daughter in a chokehold.
One of the officers proceeded to speak with Mize in the backyard. He indicated he had been outside on the porch when he heard raised voices coming from inside the home. He quickly went inside and saw his daughter having a disagreement with her brother. So, he intervened by physically separating the two to de-escalate the situation, the report said.
Mize went on to say his ex-wife accused him of choking their daughter while holding her back from her brother. He was able to give the officers surveillance footage from the residence that showed the altercation between the siblings allegedly started because the son was bothering the daughter. Mize then rushed in, grabbed his daughter and held her back without putting her in the chokehold, the report said…