Dustin M. Patrick, a 35-year-old resident of Breeze Hill Lane in Palm Coast, was booked at the Flagler County jail on a felony child abuse charge after allegedly attacking a teen employee Friday (May 27) at Red Crab, the seafood restaurant that replaced Ruby Tuesday in Palm Coast.
It was the second such alleged attack by a stranger against another in five days at different Palm Coast businesses, in front of others. On May 22, at a 39-year-old man was captured on surveillance video at a convenience store off Palm Coast Parkway throwing a cup of coffee at the foot of an elderly man, then slugging the elderly man after being challenged. The 39 year old faces a felony battery charge.
In Friday’s incident, also caught on surveillance video, D.K., the under-age employee, had just finished his shift and was preparing to clock out near the bar area at Red Crab when he noticed Patrick eying him continuously. D.K. told authorities he did not know the man. So he ignored him, went to the computer station and clocked out.
D.K. then walked toward the exit to leave. At that point, the teen told authorities, Patrick, who had been drinking at the bar and would later be described by other employees as heavily intoxicated, “in a completely unprovoked manner stood up from the bar, walked toward D.K. and struck him with a closed fist directly on the right side of D.K.’s face,” according to Patrick’s arrest report. Patrick claimed D.K. had done something to him in the past, which D.K. denied.(See surveillance video of the attack here.)
The incident took place late that night. By then, employees told Flagler County Sheriff’s deputies, they had stopped serving him drinks because he appeared so intoxicated. Red Crab surveillance footage showed Patrick alone at the bar. He is seen standing up to confront D.K. and then seen striking him, according to a deputy’s account.
By the time deputies arrived D.K. was at the bar with an ice pack to the part of his head where he’d been struck. Patrick had left, driving a Honda Civic–and had left one of his credit cards at the bar. Deputies linked his license plate number to him, and to the card. (Since he was not caught driving while allegedly intoxicated, that was not part of the investigation.) Deputies went to his house, where “he appeared to be extremely intoxicated and could not recall what had occurred at the Red Crab,” his arrest report states.
Red Crab trespassed Patrick from its property. Patrick was booked at the jail that night, and had his first appearance before a judge within hours. Circuit Judge Chris France set bond at $2,500, which Patrick posted. He was released Saturday afternoon. He must comply with a no-contact order regarding the alleged victim, and surrender all firearms and ammunition in his possession to the Sheriff’s Office, pending the resolution of the case.
John says
Our society has gone mad.
Steve says
Heavily intoxicated and drives home. The Cops get there and He doesn’t remember, How convenient. Alcohol definitely changes some People and it’s usually not for the better. Hitting a Minor is pretty serious accusation. Live on tape. So good luck NOT
Betty says
Palm Coast loves this! More more more, build more! Bring in more great citizens!
Paul Cook says
ONLY $2500 bucks. This is where the problem lies.
Should be @ least $50,000 OR more. Our Judges today are “PANTY ASS” &
the Justice system is a mess
Deirdre Rutledge says
It’s going to be great if DeSantis passes a law that these same people can walk around with guns in their pockets in public with no restrictions.
We still romanticize the wild wild west and old school gangstas with their tommy guns, and still now with right wing politicians such as Marjorie Taylor Green shooting and blowing things up in commercials. She just won (again!) to represent her district for the Republicans for congress in a landslide victory (AFTER the school shooting in Texas). I would certainly describe her as an extremist, what’s this world coming to?
It’s going to be less romantic when guys like this have guns in their hand every time someone annoys them for some mysterious reason. It so disturbing that we’ve been having drive-bys around here recently, I left Atlanta for that very reason, I never thought I’d see this stuff in Palm Coast.
I was assaulted many years ago by a group of people that thought I was someone else.
I kept trying to tell them I wasn’t who they thought I was, and didn’t know what the hell they were talking about, but they were a bunch of drunk idiots and the next thing you know I was getting punched by strangers for no reason (decades before cameras were available).
I did NOTHING to provoke this attack, I was just walking down the street alone getting to my car. These are the exact people that will want to walk around with guns on the street!
PLEASE let’s keep this in mind when we vote, even people who love guns might want to rethink that just anyone can have one in their hands at any times with no training, background check, specialized license or restrictions of any kind. Anybody, 18 or older. The only way we’re going to stop this madness is at the voting booth.
Jimbo99 says
Things just keep getting better & weirder in Biden’s America.
bob says
the “Trump Affect” has injured this country
The dude says
Dude drove home.
Staly has cameras everywhere.
The dude drove home.
Now, if he’d had en expired tag or a broken license plate light…
He’ll be free to continue his obviously poor life choices among us all as the Flagler County court system seems to be a revolving door that allows depravity to walk through again and again.
Krusty Krabber says
The pathetic drunk coward’s actions aside…. Minors are allowed to work where alcohol is served at a bar late on a Friday night?
A.j says
Palm Coast isn’t the nice community it used to be. People please watch your surroundings and be very careful out there. This place is getting crazy..
Wow says
What the heck is up with the 30-something male cohort?
Kelly says
Why was the man still being served if he was heavily intoxicated? Looks like an unsafe work environment and an opening for a flood of lawsuits yet to come
Dave says
World gone mad.
Deborah Coffey says
Yes. And, shouldn’t a bar manager call the police when someone is that intoxicated BEFORE that person gets in a car?
Sherry says
@ John Right On! and. . . Rupert Murdoch and Rogers Ailes have clearly accomplished their goal of brainwashing enough Americans that FOX controls almost 40% of voters like an army of “vombies” who are filled with fear and hate!
Laurel says
Deborah:
NO!
I was a bartender, and it was not my job to be everyone’s mommy. I cut off many folks in my career, but I was not to follow people out the door to see what their intentions were. I’ve called police from my home while an obvious drunken neighbor got in her car, but, at work, I could not keep up with every individual and still maintain a very, very busy business.
One thing that annoys the heck out of me is that we don’t expect people to be responsible for themselves, and what they do is someone else’s fault or responsibility.
Laurel says
Steve: A drunk driver only needs to get a good lawyer to keep his record clean. Very sad.
Laurel says
Jimbo99: My poor little orange tree died. So sad, after five years, and for the first time, finally, with a little batch of oranges, it died. Damn Biden!
Laurel says
AJ: When we first moved up here from south Florida, people, in a store or parking lot, would smile at us and say “hi” who didn’t know us. I’d turn around to see if they were talking to someone else! No more. Sorry to say, the same thing is happening here as happened in south Florida. Florida has been constantly raped by development. To me, developers are the bottom of the barrel. Not much better, is a mailbox with the NY Yankee logo on it, or the restaurant filled with Pittsburgh Steelers paraphernalia. All my life I’ve heard how much better it is up north by droves of people who moved here and brought their lack of manners with them.
Laurel says
Wow: It’s their time of the month. :)
Seriously, it’s like nature is purge mode.