Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Lacedrick Keyon Brunson, 24, was arrested yesterday and charged with attempted murder and two counts of child abuse after allegedly stabbing his girlfriend in the chest and throwing two children to the ground.

At about 1:30 p.m. yesterday, Gainesville Police Department officers responded to a call from the victim, who said Brunson had just stabbed her multiple times. The first officer arrived almost immediately and reported that he found Brunson outside the apartment, covered in blood; he reported that Brunson was trying to get back inside the apartment, where the victim and the two children were. A witness who was holding a kitchen knife was reportedly trying to stop Brunson from re-entering the apartment.

The officer handcuffed Brunson and made contact with the victim, who was also reportedly covered in blood and was transported to a hospital; the officer reported that the victim had been stabbed twice in the upper chest and once on the chin and also had a “slicing” cut on the back of her head. Although the knife wounds were potentially life-threatening, the victim was reportedly in stable condition when the report was written.

The victim reportedly told an officer that Brunson had been “acting crazy” for the past two days, talking a lot about God and even saying that he was God. She said she had been sitting on the couch with two children when Brunson said he wanted a “group hug” and squeezed all three of them so tightly that they couldn’t breathe. She said she tried to escape the “hug” and told Brunson they couldn’t breathe, and he responded, “I am God, they aren’t going to die” and kept squeezing. During the struggle, Brunson allegedly yanked the children from the victim and threw them both on the ground. He then allegedly picked up the knife and stabbed the victim until the witness intervened.

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The witness told an officer that she was outside the front door of the apartment when she heard screaming; she said she went inside and saw the victim fighting off Brunson while he tried to stab her. The witness said she took the knife from Brunson.

The children were reportedly uninjured.

Bail information is currently unavailable.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.