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An Augusta man was charged Tuesday with the violent beating of his wife in front of their 7-year-old son after she tried to leave him, authorities said.

Tommy Lee Ward Sr., 43, of Keron Way, is accused of grabbing his wife by the hair as she tried to leave, causing a scene outside witnessed by at least one neighbor and the couple’s son.

That neighbor told police that he saw Ward “punch the victim in the back of the head, knock her to the ground, grab her by the hair and drag her to the stairs, then grab the victim by the left arm and throw her up the stairs and into the residence,” a sheriff’s report says.

The witness told deputies that he continued to hear the altercation and the sounds of items breaking from inside the home.

The couple’s 7-year-old son witnessed the entire beating frm the backseat of the car in the driveway. He saw and heard his father strike the victim and drag her into the residence.

“The child was observed screaming and crying inside the vehicle when officers arrived,” a report says.

The victim suffered significant bruising and swelling to the left arm and bruising to the back of her neck and upper shoulder area. She required treatment at MCG.

Ward was charged with battery and cruelty to children in the third degree.

Published Sept. 13, 2012