Man arrested on felony warrant for allegedly biting NPMC nurse

A local man was arrested on a felony warrant Friday on charges he bit a nurse at National Park Medical Center on the thumb, causing a deep laceration that required stitches when he was treated in January.

Jeremiah Julius Johnson, 46, of Hot Springs, was arrested shortly after 4:30 p.m. Friday in the 400 block of Broadway Street on a warrant for second-degree assault, a felony punishable by up to six years in prison.

Johnson, who reported no prior offenses, was later released on $2,500 bail and is scheduled to appear in Garland County District Court on June 7.

According to the probable cause affidavit, on Jan. 21, Hot Springs police responded to NPMC, 1910 Malvern Ave., in reference to an assault on a nursing staff member.

Officers spoke with the victim, who stated that she had been bitten on the thumb by a patient named Johnson. She noticed that Johnson was turned slightly to the right when he “became erratic” and began swinging his arms.

The nurses attempted to give him medical treatment by putting an IV in his arm “because he had meth in his system,” the affidavit said. The victim told police that she and other nurses were trying to restrain Johnson when he bit her left thumb, “causing a deep laceration.”

She said when she felt the pain, she realized Johnson “wouldn’t let go of her hand,” so she punched him in the back of the head. Johnson eventually let go and it was discovered the nurse received two stitches to close the laceration on her thumb.

Officers spoke with two other nurses involved in the incident who made similar statements, including one who noted that she was struck in the forehead once by Johnson but “did not have any visible injuries.”

Johnson was not arrested at the time, but a warrant was issued for his arrest on February 28.