A Providence, RI, woman has been arrested after an exchange with a reporter and photographer for ABC affiliate WLNE ended with the reporter being bitten by the woman’s dog.
Melissa Lawrence has been charged with two counts of felony assault with a dangerous weapon after throwing a rock at WLNE photographer Marc Jackson and siccing her dogs on both Jackson and reporter Abbey Niezgoda.
The two had approached Lawrence to tell her a suspect in the weekend shooting of her daughter had turned himself in. As the reporter and photographer backed off after Lawrence began her assault, Lawrence ran inside her house and grabbed a baseball bat. “Why are you attacking us ma’am?” asked Niezgoda. Lawrence replied, “Get away from me.” She then sicced her two dogs on the crew. The dogs chased Niezgoda, biting her on the arm and following her as she tried escaping down the street.
Watch the video of the incident after the jump.
According to the station, Niezgoda was treated for a dog bite to the forearm. Lawrence’s daughter has been released from the hospital. She is recovering from a gunshot wound to the back.
Here’s the video of the incident: