Man arrested for shooting at car with his child and former girlfriend inside

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Larry Vauchon Howard, 32, was arrested yesterday after allegedly sexually battering the mother of his child and then shooting at a car while both his former girlfriend and their child were inside.

The victim reportedly told a responding Gainesville Police Department officer that Howard had forced her to have sex with him after he injured her by punching her in the back; she said she was afraid of him due to past violence and the threat of future violence. After he was done, she said he told her that he hurt his hand when he punched her and demanded that she take him to the hospital.

The victim told the officer that while she was driving him to the hospital, they began arguing again, and Howard got out of the vehicle and walked away. She said she went home and picked up their child, then went to find Howard because she believed he would harm her in the future if she did not.

She reportedly said that when she found Howard, she slowed the vehicle to turn around and saw him raise a gun and fire a shot at the vehicle. The shot did not hit the vehicle, and she said that she fled the area.

Howard was reportedly seen running through The Ridge at Gainesville apartment complex with a gun and was found by officers in a nearby complex about 20 minutes after the alleged shooting. The gun and shell casing were reportedly not located.

Post Miranda, Howard reportedly denied punching the victim and denied he had a gun or shot at the victims. He reportedly said he did not understand why he was being charged with sexual battery.

Howard has unspecified convictions in Georgia between 2009 and 2021; his address is listed in Georgia, but he has six felony convictions (none violent) and five misdemeanor convictions (one violent) in Alachua County since 2021. He served an 18-month prison sentence on six of the charges and was released in October 2023. Judge Susan Miller-Jones 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.