A Van Meter man was arrested Friday on a Dallas County warrant in connection with a June incident in which he allegedly harassed another Van Meter man.
Ellery Vaughn DePaul, 34, of 408 Grant St., Van Meter, was charged with third-degree harassment.
The incident occurred June 20 about 10:15 p.m. outside a residence in the 400 block of Pleasant Street in Van Meter, where DePaul allegedly “punched the window on his ex-wife’s vehicle,” according to court records.
A witness to the alleged insult to the motor vehicle directed DePaul to “leave the property,” and DePaul allegedly replied, “Don’t make me hurt you,” according to court records.
DePaul was held in the Dallas County on a $300 cash or surety bond. He is scheduled for a pretrial hearing Aug. 20 in Dallas County District Court.
DePaul was convicted of harassment of a public official or employee in 2014 in Polk County District Court.
*A criminal charge is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
I’m the ex-wife if you’d like more to the story. I’ve endured years of abuse from his hands and only am able to finally end it because I moved away. Out of his reach and am seeking therapy to help after everything because it took me years to realize that I have a slight form of Stockholm syndrome. It was the only love I ever knew, and I accepted the abuse as part of the love after his mother passed. I married him right out of high school, and he was a monster to be with and always threatened to take my children with money from his wealthy aunt. He finally left me when he found a woman overseas, but that didn’t pan out. Even after the divorce, he assaulted me, and Van Meter Police didn’t charge him when two of my children were coming home from a visit. It took moving over an hour away and petitioning for a release of domestic violence to finally feel safe. However, I will always have some paranoia about his actions because they are so unpredictable. I live on private property and have a locked gate and cameras up as he has always been sporadic with his actions we just want to be safe. Without me being his punching bag I do not want my children turned into his punching bags during visitation. I recently had to file a DHS report as he held my two younger sons’ heads into a sofa and spanked them simply for annoying him. During my call in, my youngest walked in and said, “One time daddy spanked me so hard I peed my pants. I didn’t know I had to pee though.” This is unacceptable, and it shouldn’t take over a decade of abuse to actually see some justice. I married him pregnant right after I graduated high school. But if I wouldn’t have endured the things I have, I wouldn’t have my five wonderful children in my life. We are all seeking therapy. I am still recovering from a car accident and then a beach accident on Father’s Day, but we are carrying on. Mostly with the support of my other half and family. My coping mechanism before was poetry, but I’ve realized now that therapy is my best option.