Man arrested for domestic battery, child abuse

A Key Largo man was arrested Thursday evening for domestic battery and child abuse.

The victim called the Sheriff’s Office at 8:20 p.m. She told dispatchers she was in a van northbound in Key Largo with her ex-boyfriend, 42 year old David Saletta of Key Largo. She said he was yelling at her in the van and causing a disturbance. She said she had two children in the car with her.

Deputy Cody Kerns located the van at the 106 mile marker in the parking lot of the Circle K convenience store. The victim was there with the two children. Saletta was not on the scene. She said Saletta was intoxicated. She said he was sitting in the back seat behind her as she was driving. She said he got upset, slapped her, bashed her head against the steering wheel, hit her a few more times and then bit her on the cheek. She became even more afraid when he began putting his hands over her eyes while she was driving, so she pulled over and called the Sheriff’s office. She said she originally stopped at the 99 mile marker and got out of the van with the kids. She said he got out of the car too, and she got back in with the kids and left quickly, leaving him behind.

Deputies responded to that location and found Saletta walking on the bike path. He had a beer in his hand. When he saw Deputy Kerns, he began screaming at him. He refused to comply with commands until he was threatened with a Taser; he was then taken into custody.

He began yelling and screaming again in the patrol car on the way to the jail. A second warning about the Taser calmed him down again. Once at the jail, Deputy Kerns checked Saletta’s record and found a previous arrest and conviction in Nevada for domestic battery. He was booked into jail on charges of domestic battery second or subsequent offense (a felony crime), with child abuse and with violation of the open container ordinance.