Sonoma Co. Woman Arrested In Dollar Tree 'Melee,' Possible Hate Crime: Sheriff

SONOMA COUNTY, CA -- A woman was arrested Friday on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon following a fight with a mother carrying a child in a store in unincorporated Santa Rosa, a Sonoma County sheriff's spokesman said. Deputies arrested 52-year-old Santa Rosa woman Marion Forrest after they responded at 1:51 p.m. to the Dollar Tree store at 777 Sebastopol Road.

The sheriff's office has also asked the district attorney to see if the offenses were a hate crime because a witness said someone said to the mother to shut her Mexican baby up.

Sheriff's spokesman Sgt. Spencer Crum said, however, "It's going to be a far stretch."

The alleged fight between Forrest and the mother started when the child in the mother's arms was crying. Crum said Forrest allegedly told the mother to quiet her child and an argument started.

Forrest allegedly started fighting the mother even though Forrest's sister tried to stop her.

Crum said a male employee intervened and he was allegedly hit on the head with a product separator.

After that, the mother and Forrest's sister Frankie Brouwer, 47, of Santa Rosa, allegedly started fighting.

"It kind of became a melee," Crum said.

No one was injured but Brouwer was arrested on suspicion of battery and child abuse.

Deputies asked the district attorney to charge Forrest with the same offenses.

The mother had three children with her ages 2, 4 and 13. She was holding the 2-year-old.

Crum said the offenses would rise to the level of a hate crime if Forrest wanted the baby to shut up because it was Hispanic rather than because it was just crying.

Crum said the district attorney will make that decision.

By Bay City News Service

Photo via Mike Mozart/Flickr Creative Commons