Teen spits on deputy during mental health transport in Florida, United States.
NEWS:
An 18-year-old woman spat on a Flagler County deputy while officers were attempting to restrain her during an involuntary mental health transport in Palm Coast, Florida.
The incident occurred at approximately 7 p.m. on Saturday, June 6, 2026. Deputies had responded to a report concerning a woman who was intoxicated and in distress.
Authorities identified her as Autumn Bellows, a Palm Coast resident. After assessing the situation, deputies determined that she met the criteria to be placed in involuntary protective custody and arranged to transport her to a mental health facility.
The protective custody decision was not initially a criminal arrest. Under Florida law, law enforcement officers may take a person to an appropriate receiving facility for an involuntary examination when the statutory criteria appear to have been met.
Authorities did not release a diagnosis, blood alcohol reading or information identifying any substance Bellows may have consumed. The public account described her only as intoxicated and distressed.
During the trip, Bellows became belligerent in the rear of the patrol vehicle, according to the sheriff’s office. Deputies reported that she kicked inside the vehicle and repeatedly struck her head against the partition separating the rear seat from the front compartment.
Bellows also told the transporting deputy that she had escaped or slipped out of the handcuffs placed on her. Deputies then attempted to secure her again.
The released footage records officers working beside the open rear door of the patrol vehicle as they try to control Bellows and place additional restraints on her. She remains verbally confrontational and physically uncooperative during the encounter.
The video directly records Bellows spitting toward a deputy at close range. The sheriff’s office said the saliva struck the deputy’s face and hair.
Bellows also told deputies during the exchange that she wanted to be taken to jail and wanted criminal charges filed against her, according to the official account.
Deputies secured her in handcuffs and additional restraints. They also placed a spit mask over her head to prevent another incident while maintaining control of her.
No weapon is visible or reported in connection with the confrontation. The physical act supporting the criminal charge was the spit directed at the deputy. Authorities did not report that the deputy suffered an injury requiring medical treatment.
Instead of continuing directly to the mental health destination, deputies took Bellows to AdventHealth Palm Coast for medical evaluation. She was medically cleared before being transported to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility.
Bellows was arrested on one count of battery on a law enforcement officer. The sheriff’s office described the accusation as a felony under Florida law.
Florida law ordinarily defines battery as intentionally touching or striking another person against that person’s will, or intentionally causing bodily harm. When the alleged victim is an on-duty law enforcement officer and the accused knows the person is an officer, the offense may be reclassified as a third-degree felony.
The official release listed no separate charge for resisting an officer, damaging the patrol vehicle, escaping restraints or disorderly intoxication. The sole publicly announced count was battery on a law enforcement officer.
Bellows was later released after posting a $2,500 bond. Her release did not resolve the charge or constitute a dismissal.
The footage establishes the act of spitting and the efforts to restrain Bellows. Statements concerning her condition before deputies arrived, the protective-custody assessment and her conduct earlier in the vehicle come from the law enforcement account because those portions are not established solely by the released visual sequence.
No later public update available by June 12 announced a court date, plea, additional charge, prosecutorial filing decision or final disposition. The filing of the felony accusation is not a conviction, and criminal responsibility must be determined through the judicial process.
News story written by Tifa Winters.
