x
Breaking News
More () »

Harveys Lake Man Beat Mother, Killed Dog with Baseball Bat

HARVEYS LAKE — Last Tuesday afternoon, during the peak of the snow storm, chaos erupted in one Luzerne County neighborhood. Now a man from Harveys Lake is...

HARVEYS LAKE -- Last Tuesday afternoon, during the peak of the snow storm, chaos erupted in one Luzerne County neighborhood. Now a man from Harveys Lake is in jail, his mother is injured, and their family dog is dead.

Charlie Ide, 34, was charged with assaulting his mother and killing his dog after he allegedly beat both of them with a baseball bat last week. He was denied bail Monday and remains in jail.

One neighbor, who didn't want to give us his name, lives across the street from Charlie Ide and his mother on Lincoln Avenue in Harveys Lake. He was outside plowing last Tuesday when he heard screaming.

"The other neighbor from behind us thought he got hurt or something," the neighbor explained.

They originally thought he crashed his quad while plowing or got hurt shoveling. Neighbors quickly found out Ide wasn't yelling because he was injured; he was fighting with his mother.

"We all congregated here to make sure, at the end of the driveway, to make sure he wasn't going any further," the neighbor said.

Ide allegedly beat his mother with a baseball bat while calling her a witch. Police described Ide's behavior as irrational when they arrived at the home.

"There's never been an issue before. I've known the man for his entire life. He was always a gentleman. He was always polite. He never gave the police a problem," Harveys Lake Police Chief Charles Musial said.

Officials believe when Ide starting beating his mother, the family dog intervened trying to protect her. They think once Ide realized he was beating the dog, and that the dog was dead, he stopped the assault and went outside. That's where police found him. Reports show he was lying in the snow out front of the house when police got there.

"Ironically, a dog that she rescued in December, and she brought it back to full health, had come after the son," Chief Musial said. "I believe and she believes that the dog did help save her life," he added.

Neighbors and police say Ide and his mother had a close relationship. They lived in the home in Luzerne County together and both worked as janitors for the Lake-Lehman School District.

"I know that he loved his mother to death and the dog that was at the home," Chief Musial said.

Ide's mother was hospitalized for a week for a broken arm, a brain bleed, and a laceration to the back of the head. She was released from the hospital Tuesday night and is in a rehabilitation facility.

Ide will face a preliminary hearing on March 30.

Before You Leave, Check This Out