Burnsville Woman Charged with Assaulting Romantic Rival, Stealing Purse

A Burnsville woman has been charged with assaulting a woman, stealing her wallet and smashing her video camera.

Cassandra Aleshea Dalton, 24, is charged with felony theft from a person, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

She is also charged with two misdemeanors: fourth-degree criminal damage to property and fifth-degree assault, each of which has a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.

According to the criminal complaint, Burnsville police were called to a home on May 20 after someone reported an assault.

Police spoke to the victim, who said she had dropped off Dalton’s ex-boyfriend nearby and had just parked her car at her sister’s home when Dalton – holding a metal stick and a bottle – confronted the victim about her relationship with her ex-boyfriend.

Dalton scratched, pushed, slapped and swore at the victim, and the victim’s purse, which had been on her arm, fell to the ground, the complaint says. The victim told police that she tried to reason with Dalton, but Dalton grabbed her, threw her to the ground and punched her between 10 and 20 times.

Dalton then grabbed the woman’s purse and walked toward a nearby home. Some of Dalton’s family members tried to convince her to return the victim’s purse, but Dalton removed the wallet, including the victim’s cash, and drove away.

During the altercation, Dalton also smashed the victim’s digital camera on the ground, according to the complaint.

Officers noted that the victim had bruises and swelling beneath her right eye, with a possible fracture of her cheekbone or eye socket.

Police found Dalton at a home in Prior Lake and arrested her. During the arrest, the victim’s wallet was retrieved.

Dalton is free on a $10,000 bond. An omnibus hearing in her case is scheduled Aug. 14 in Dakota County District Court in Hastings.