Groveland City Council candidate accused of head-butting man in neighborhood road-rage scuffle, police say

GROVELAND, Fla. - A candidate for Groveland City Council has been arrested on charges of aggravated assault and false imprisonment stemming from an apparent road-rage incident with another driver in a neighborhood, according to police records.

James – Jim – O'Neil, who has launched a campaign for a seat on the Groveland City Council, is accused of getting into an argument and fighting with another driver, using his vehicle to prevent that other driver from leaving, and headbutting that driver in the face. O'Neil, through a statement posted online, has denied the allegations and claims he is the victim.

What we know:

A police report filed with Groveland City Police states that on Aug. 22, Michael Trentadue was driving out of the Trilogy subdivision, near Salt Marsh Lane and Bayou Bend Road, when he realized that he had deodorant at home. Instead of turning around, he put his vehicle in reverse and began to drive back through the gate.

That's when O'Neil then pulled up next to him and began yelling at him through his car window, the police report states. O'Neil then allegedly used his vehicle to prevent Trentadue from leaving the community. That's when Trentadue got out of his vehicle and approached O'Neil. 

Trentadue said he began to walk away as O'Neil got out of his vehicle. O'Neil is accused of putting Trentadue in a "front headlock and head-butted him in the forehead," the police report said.

The other side:

In the police report, O'Neil told police that he saw Trentadue's vehicle reverse at a high speed and decided to follow it. He told police that he did exchange words with Trentadue and admitted to pushing him against his vehicle.

He told police that the headbutt was an accident because the two bumped heads.

FOX 35 emailed and called O'Neil for comment on Thursday. We did not receive a response. However, O'Neil shared a statement from a law firm on Wednesday within a Facebook group that said he has the right to defend himself and that he is the victim.

By the numbers:

According to the police report, the officer noted that O'Neil was 6' 2" and that Trentadue was 5' 7", casting doubt on O'Neil's assertion that the two bumped heads.

"He’s way taller than me," Trentadue told FOX 35 in an interview. "If we bumped heads, it would have been me bumping his chin."

Trentadue said his nose was broken. O'Neil had a cut on his head, which was still visible in his jail booking photo.

The charges

O'Neil was booked into jail on charges of battery and false imprisonment. A judge granted him $15,000 bond. He was ordered to have no contact with Trentadue.