Oakland police suspect that former KTVU news anchor Frank Somerville tackled his daughter to the floor of his home after she grabbed his phone during an argument over money, and that he gripped her neck so forcefully that she nearly passed out, according to sources familiar with the investigation.
Somerville’s account of the incident Monday night in Oakland differed in some ways, the sources indicated. He told police that after his daughter took his phone, he wrapped his arms around her to keep her from leaving, then took her to the ground as she bloodied him by punching and scratching him, then put one hand on her neck and the other over her mouth to keep her from screaming.
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Officers arrested the once-prominent 67-year-old journalist that night on suspicion of committing aggravated battery against his daughter, Callie, a 20-year-old licensed security guard. He was booked into jail but made bail several hours later. The Alameda County District Attorney’s Office must decide whether the evidence supports filing formal charges.
The altercation came as Somerville was trying to make a comeback onto the airwaves. Though he won several Emmys during a nearly three-decade tenure at KTVU, his career began unraveling in 2021 amid a struggle with alcoholism that he acknowledged, leading to a series of arrests and other stumbles…