Police: Woman Charged with Criminal Domestic Violence

A Mauldin woman faces a criminal domestic violence charge after allegedly getting drunk and abusing her common-law husband in an argument over what shirt their son should wear to church, a police incident report said.

Wendy Elaine Benton, 39, was arrested and charged with one count of criminal domestic violence, the second such charge she has received this year, the report said.

The incident happened after the family went to downtown Greenville for the evening whereupon Benton allegedly drank too much, her husband told police. When the family got home, the suspect continued to drink and became "grossly intoxicated," her husband told police. The couple got into an argument over what their son should wear to church, and the incident only escalated from there, the report said.

The husband alleged the argument and ensuing yelling and cursing from his wife continued for five hours before he finally contacted police, the report said.

After clearing the scene and leaving in anticipation that Benton would eventually calm down and go to sleep, police were called back to the residence later by the husband, who claimed Benton hit him in the head and spit on him as their son watched, the report said.

Police then arrested Benton who became combative and began banging her head on the patrol car's divider screen, causing swelling and bruising to her head, the report said. After securing her, police then learned that the woman was on medication and had not taken it in three weeks, the report said. The woman allegedly told police if taken to jail she would attempt to kill herself by "cutting or hanging," the report stated.

The woman was then removed from the patrol car and transported by ambulance to Greenville Memorial Hospital for evaluation. During the course of the transfer, Benton had to be restrained in the ambulance and continuously tried to bang her head on the ambulance's supply cabinets, and continued to threaten to kill herself and also her husband, the report said.

After evaluation, Benton was released back to police custody and transported to the county detention center and placed under suicide watch while there, the report said. She since has been released on bond.