Gainesville woman arrested for threatening to stab man

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Camille Alta Janay Haile, 33, was arrested yesterday after allegedly charging at a man while holding two knives overhead.

At about 12:45 p.m. on March 18, a Gainesville Police Department officer responded to Eden Park Apartments (1318 NE 39th Avenue), where witnesses and the victim said Haile had gotten into an argument with the first witness inside an apartment before getting into a subsequent argument with the first witness and the victim outside. Haile allegedly threatened to kill both the victim and the witness during the second argument, and at one point, she allegedly tried to hit the victim and hit a second witness instead.

Haile allegedly charged at the victim, who restrained her on the ground; when he backed away, she reportedly returned to the apartment, saying she was going to kill the first witness and the victim.

A short time later, Haile allegedly came out of the apartment with two kitchen knives and charged at the victim with both knives raised overhead. She reportedly fell and dropped a knife, and the victim picked up the knife; the second and third witnesses reportedly dragged her back into the apartment.

The first witness said Haile threatened to kill him during the first argument and provided an account consistent with the information above.

The victim reportedly said he heard Haile yelling at the first witness, saying she would kill him, and when he came outside, he saw Haile trying to fight the witness; he said he told her to leave, and she started arguing with him. He said she tried to hit him but hit the second witness before charging at him, so he held her on the ground. He reportedly said he had his hands around her neck because she is bigger than he is and he was trying to defend himself. He said after he left her go, she ran back to the apartment while threatening to kill him and the first witness; she came back a short time later with two knives held overhead and charged at him again, but she dropped a knife, which he picked up. He said the second and third witnesses dragged her away while she was still holding a knife. He said he believed she would have killed him if she hadn’t fallen.

A fourth witness said she heard a woman yelling and walked outside, where she heard Haile saying she wanted to “swing on” people. She said she returned to her own apartment, but a short time later, she heard the victim yelling, “She has a knife,” and she went back outside and saw Haile on the ground, still threatening to kill the victim.

Three other witnesses in the apartment where the incident started said they didn’t see much and never saw a knife, but two of them said they saw the victim choking Haile. One of these witnesses said Haile went in and out of the apartment twice, saying she was “going to fight that man”; when she returned the second time, she was scraped up.

Post Miranda, Haile reportedly said she had argued with the first witness, and he pushed her multiple times. She said the first witness left the apartment, and she grabbed a knife and followed him “because she was not going to allow that to happen.” She said she argued with the first witness outside, and then she went back into the apartment and put the knife back. She said that when she went back outside, the victim attacked her and choked her; while she was trying to run away, she fell multiple times and got scraped up. Although she said she had followed the witness out of the apartment, she claimed that she only grabbed the knife for protection.

When the officer asked her to clarify when she grabbed the knife, Haile reportedly changed her story multiple times. She said she never raised both knives over her head and never charged at the victim, but she admitted to having two knives. She denied trying to hit the victim and hitting the second witness instead.

Haile reportedly said she had been drinking, and the officer noted that it was obvious that she was under the influence of alcohol.

Haile has been charged with aggravated assault with intent to commit a felony. She has one misdemeanor conviction (non-violent), and Judge Adam Lee set bail at $100,000.

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.