Gainesville man arrested for cutting passerby on Newberry Road, battering officers

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Jamiel Spencer, 32, was arrested yesterday morning after allegedly attacking a passerby with a knife on Newberry Road and then hitting and biting officers.

At about 7:37 a.m. on December 27, Gainesville Police Department officers responded to the 6000 block of Newberry Road, where the victim said he was walking out of McDonald’s when Spencer approached him from the bus stop nearby with “crazy eyes”; Spencer was allegedly holding a knife and said, “I will kill you.”

When the victim tried to back away, Spencer allegedly grabbed his forearm and head-butted his forehead, then cut the top of the victim’s hand with the knife.

The arresting officer reported that the victim had a small laceration on his hand and an abrasion on his forehead. The victim reportedly got on an RTS bus to escape; he said that when he pushed Spencer away, he grabbed a Trulieve ID that was hanging from his neck. The ID was in the name of “Jamal Spencer.”

The responding officers found Spencer, who matched the description provided by the victim, on the south side of the road; when they spoke to Spencer, he reportedly said he had called 911. When they asked if his name was “Jamal,” he allegedly started calling out other names and phrases and said, “How do you know my name?”

The arresting officer reported that Spencer had a sheathed knife on his hip.

As the second officer approached Spencer from behind to detain him, the first officer approached him from the front, and Spencer allegedly turned around and started punching the second officer. The two officers reportedly took Spencer to the ground, but he allegedly refused to show his right hand, resisting and kicking the first officer.

After additional units arrived, Spencer was escorted to a patrol vehicle but head-butted the second officer in the face and bit him on the bicep. The officer reportedly suffered scratches and abrasions on his face and a deep bite on his arm.

Post Miranda, Spencer reportedly did not want to make a statement about the incident with the first victim. He was identified with the Trulieve ID, and the identity was confirmed with his Florida ID.

Spencer has local traffic offenses going back to 2012 and one misdemeanor conviction for driving without a valid license. Judge Luis Bustamante ordered him held without bail pending a hearing on a motion from the State Attorney’s office to hold him without bail until trial.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.