Woman Dies Weeks After Head Was Slammed Into Wall: Sheriff

SARASOTA, FL — A Sarasota man faces homicide charges after a woman whose head he slammed into a wall died weeks after the incident, the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.

Nicklaus Williams, 26, has been in custody since May 6 and with the addition of the homicide charge, he’ll now be held without bond, the sheriff’s office said. He was originally charged with felony battery, criminal mischief and resisting arrest without violence.

Deputies responded to an apartment along Beneva Road around 8:30 p.m. May 5 after a witness called 911 to report a loud argument in which Williams was yelling, screaming, and throwing furniture and appliances, the sheriff’s office said.

By the time deputies arrived, Williams had already left the apartment. When they interviewed the victim, she said that Williams had broken several items in the home, but no crime had taken place.

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Two hours later, she called 911 after he returned to the apartment and slammed her head into a wall, the sheriff’s office said.

Deputies found the woman down the street from her apartment and noticed that she had a large hematoma above her eye. She was treated by medical personnel but refused to go to the hospital.

Deputies found Williams and took him into custody May 6, the sheriff’s office said.

The victim was admitted into the hospital May 13 after suffering complications from her head injury, which caused internal bleeding and, eventually, necrosis, deputies said. Her treatment included several surgical procedures.

The woman died May 29. According to both hospital staff and the Medical Examiner’s Office, her head injury ultimately caused her death, the sheriff’s office said. The victim’s identity hasn’t been released under Marsy’s Law.