Inset: Amy A. Baker (Broward Jail). Background: The area on I-95 where Baker allegedly bit off part of her husband's ear as he drove (Google Maps).
A 43-year-old mother in Florida is accused of attacking her husband, allegedly biting off part of his ear while he was driving on the interstate with their two young children in the car, then laughing as blood poured from the injury.
Amy Arlene Baker was taken into custody by Florida Highway Patrol and charged with one count of aggravated battery causing bodily harm or disability and two counts of child neglect without great bodily harm following the alleged altercation, court records show.
According to a probable cause affidavit obtained by Law&Crime, the incident took place about 8:15 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 15. Baker and her family were on their way home from a "boat party" in Fort Lauderdale and were driving north on I-95 near Deerfield Beach when the couple began arguing. Baker's husband told authorities the fight stemmed from "past problems within their relationship," the affidavit says.
During the argument, Baker allegedly called her husband several derogatory names, including a homophobic slur. Baker's husband said he responded to the insult by asking Baker, "Who is the one with the felony?"
Baker then allegedly struck him on the left side of his face with an open hand while he was driving.
About two minutes later, Baker allegedly grabbed her husband's face and head with both hands and "intentionally bit into the right side of his ear with her teeth, tearing off a portion of his ear."
The husband said he was "initially in shock" after the attack, particularly when he saw the amount of blood, and drove straight to the nearest hospital. Baker accompanied her husband while their kids were taken home by friends who had been following them from the party.
When a Florida Highway Patrol trooper arrived at the hospital, the husband was lying in an emergency room bed with a white bandage wrapped around his head. Blood appeared to be streaking down the right side of his neck and onto his shirt and shorts.
The husband told investigators he never touched or struck Baker during the altercation, but emphasized that the couple's kids, ages 1 and 7, were in the car at the time of the attack.
After Baker bit off the piece of her husband's ear, "she laughed and did not initially appear to take the severity of the injury seriously," per the affidavit.
Baker gave investigators a different account of how the confrontation began. She said she initially called 911 because she believed her husband had been drinking and alleged that he struck her while they were driving. She said the couple had been "arguing about life insurance policies, liability, and other personal issues."
After her husband allegedly struck her, Baker said she became frustrated, grabbed his head with both hands and bit his ear. She further acknowledged that she caused "a portion of the ear to become detached" and later provided that detached portion to medical personnel.
Baker told investigators she had never previously had an argument become physically violent, adding that she simply "lost control" before apologizing and rendering aid to her husband.
Baker's husband remained at the hospital for a scheduled surgery to reattach the portion of his ear that had been bitten off.
Investigators determined Baker was the primary aggressor and charged her accordingly. She was arrested just before 10 p.m. and processed at the Broward County Jail. The Department of Children and Families was notified shortly afterward.
A magistrate judge found probable cause to charge Baker, making a note on the order that read "bit off ear."
Baker was released after posting bond. A judge prohibited her from having contact with her husband, except when arranging for care and custody of their children. It was not immediately clear when she was scheduled to appear in court.