Man charged after spitting incident
A River Falls man is accused of spitting in the faces of two security officials at an Eau Claire hospital after he lost control and needed to be restrained. The man admitted to being HIV-positive and having two other infectious diseases, police say.
X, 51, is charged in Eau Claire County Court with two felony counts of second-degree recklessly endangering safety, two misdemeanor counts of battery and a misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct.
According to the criminal complaint:
Two security officers at Mayo Clinic Health System in Eau Claire, 1221 Whipple St., told police that X had been admitted to a hospital unit in July and was telling staff and patients in a bragging manner that he was HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C positive.
X became out of control on July 26 and kicked both of the security officers in the legs while they tried to calm him down.
While the security officers were placing X in a restraint chair, he spit in their faces numerous times. The saliva entered their eyes, mouths and ears.
The security officers were taken to the emergency room where they were admitted, required to decontaminate, and prescribed medications with several follow-up appointments because of their exposure to X’s saliva.
If convicted of the two felony charges, X could be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison.
