A Florida couple is facing criminal charges after a dispute over parenting advice allegedly spiraled into a violent parking lot ambush that left a mother partially undressed in front of her young son.
The incident unfolded Wednesday evening in a shopping plaza on South University Drive in Davie. According to police reports, Mary Williams and her husband, Terry Williams, confronted a woman after witnessing her discipline her child. The mother told investigators that her son had spit in her face, prompting her to smack him on the mouth and torso.
Terry Williams reportedly approached the woman first, claiming to be an employee of the Department of Children and Families (DCF). Police say he scolded the mother, telling her she “could not yell or smack her child.” While he initially walked away after being told to mind his own business, his wife, Mary, allegedly escalated the confrontation.
Investigators say Mary Williams blocked the mother from putting her son into her Honda Civic. When the mother tried to nudge her aside to reach the car door, a physical struggle broke out. The affidavit describes a harrowing scene where Mary allegedly choked the victim to the point where she “struggled to breathe and believed she was going to pass out.”
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As the fight intensified, Terry Williams allegedly rejoined the scuffle. Police and witnesses say the couple grabbed the woman by her hair and clothing. The force of the struggle was so intense that the couple “tore the victim’s shirt, ultimately ripping it completely off,” leaving the mother standing in the public parking lot in nothing but her bra.
Even after the physical attack, Mary Williams allegedly reached into the woman’s car, turned off the ignition, and walked off with the keys.
Officers who arrived at the scene at 5:37 p.m. noted that the victim had deep scratch marks on her neck and a cut on her lip. A witness backed up the mother’s account, telling police the woman wasn’t fighting back but was simply “trying to escape their grasp” while the couple pulled at her.
While Terry Williams used the authority of the DCF to start the lecture, investigators later confirmed Mary does not work for the agency. The status of Terry’s employment remains unverified in the report, though his claims served as the catalyst for the encounter.
Mary Williams is now charged with felony battery and burglary, while Terry Williams faces one count of battery. Both were released on bond Friday afternoon.
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