Suspect In Beating Caught On Tape In Front Of 2-Year-Old Held On $35,000 Bail
SALEM, N.J. (CBSNewYork) — The woman arrested in connection with an attack on another woman in South Jersey that was caught on video is being held in lieu of $35,000 bail.
Latia Harris, 25, turned herself in to Salem City police around 7 p.m. Monday following an extensive search.
"I believe Harris had no other choice than to turn herself in under her own terms as it would only be a matter of time before she was captured," said Salem Police Chief John Pelura III.
Harris faces charges of aggravated assault and making terroristic threats.
In the disturbing video, Salem Police say Harris can be seen attacking the victim as the victim's 2-year-old son tried to defend his mother.
The video shows the suspect, dressed in a McDonald's uniform, pummeling the mother in the face and kicking her in the back along a trail behind a McDonald's in Salem last week as several bystanders watch and videotape the attack.
The victim, identified as 27-year-old Catherine Ferreira, falls to the ground and while on the ground, the suspect punches the victim approximately 20 times.
WARNING: Video contains extreme violence and profane language
The suspect is also heard threatening to attack the victim's son Xavion, who kicked the suspect's legs in an attempt to stop the attack.
At one point during the video, the suspect can be heard saying: "You better get your son before I kick him in the face too!"
At the end of the video, the suspect leans in and appears to spit on the victim while she was on the ground.
"I could have been dead right now. Had she hit me in the right spot, it would have been over — over nothing. McDonald's isn't worth it; a guy isn't worth it. This is more serious than you're even comprehending," Ferreira told KYW-TV in Philadelphia.
On her 2-year-old son fighting Harris and being the only one to try to intervene, Ferreira told CBS Philly: "After that I became so much closer to my son because he didn't care what was going on. He wasn't afraid, he just wanted to defend his mom. That's my world right there, I love that boy so much."
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