Teenager Charged For Domestic Tomato Assault

SEPTEMBER 23--A Florida Woman who “wanted to eat more than her fair share of tomatoes at the dinner table” is facing criminal charges after allegedly assaulting elderly relatives who thwarted her grubby vegetable gambit, records show.

Katie Jade Gates, 19, allegedly became incensed when she was denied additional tomatoes during supper on September 12 at her family’s home in Callahan, a town 20 miles north of Jacksonville.

Gates’s grandmother told police that the teenager “began to throw a fit because she couldn’t have more tomatoes at the dinner table.” Gates allegedly threw a water bottle at her grandfather and a pack of cigarettes at a 73-year-old female relative (who was struck in the eye by the airborne tobacco). 

When confronted about her behavior by her grandfather, Gates allegedly grabbed a knife and began threatening him with it. “Motherfucker, I’ll stab you in your fucking face,” she said, according to a Nassau County Sheriff’s Office report. Gates, witnesses told cops, chased her grandfather with the knife and poked the weapon at his face.

During police questioning, Gates reportedly admitted hitting her relative in the face with the cigarette pack. She also acknowledged picking up a knife and approaching her grandfather, but denied “attempting to strike him with the knife in her hand during the argument.”

Gates was arrested and charged with two felonies, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and aggravated battery on a victim over the age of 65. She bonded out of jail after posting $18,000 bond.

A judge has ordered Gates to have no contact with the victims. She is scheduled for an October 3 court appearance. (2 pages)