A Georgia woman found herself in some... well...hot water after she was arrested for allegedly assaulting her man with an interesting weapon. A little after 5 p.m. on Tuesday (May 6), authorities were called to the Stay Lodge motel, an extended stay lodge, after a report of a domestic dispute.
Upon their arrival, they discovered a 46-year-old man with severe burns on the back of his head, neck, back and shoulders, The LaGrange Daily News reports. Police say his burns were a result of a boiling “pot of hot chicken grease” drenched on him.
Now, his girlfriend Olympia Denise Laster has been charged for the scalding crime. The 43-year-old faces one count of aggravated battery with family violence, the LaGrange Police Department said. Investigators said the alleged crime occurred during a fight. Laster, described as the “live-in girlfriend” of the victim, poured the hot chicken grease all over his upper body while he sat in a chair near the kitchen, police say. The victim, whose name has not been released, is currently recuperating at an “Atlanta area hospital capable of burn treatment.”
It’s unclear what the fight was about and if it became physical before the alleged grease throwing. The investigation is still ongoing as Laster sits behind bars at the Troup County Jail without bond.
The alleged crime very well could have been inspired by a similar incident involving soul singer Al Green. In the wee hours of October 18, 1974, Mary Woodson, a former girlfriend of Green, entered his Memphis home while he was preparing for bed in the bathroom.
Woodson went on to douse Green with a pot of scalding-hot grits, causing second-degree burns on his back, stomach, and arm. Woodson burned him so badly he would spend several months in the hospital to recover. The burns even required skin grafts, a surgical procedure used to “remove healthy skin from one part of the body and move it to cover skin that is missing or damaged.”
Following the assault, Woodson used Green’s gun to kill herself. After the attack, the “Let’s Stay Together” singer stepped away from the music business. Two years later, he purchased the Full Gospel Tabernacle, a church in Memphis, and became an ordained pastor. He continues to preach today.