Advertisement Police: Woman randomly attacked with wooden post by drunk man, husband defends her Share Shares Copy Link Copy

Police said a Vermont woman was attacked out of nowhere by a stranger swinging at her with a wooden stake. The victim's husband did not want his name used or face on camera for safety reasons. He told NBC5 what happened and what he did about it: "He grabs the stake and holds it like a baseball bat, swings it like he's trying to hit a home-run and smashes her in the face." Tuesday night police confiscated it from 22-year-old Richard Brunelle. But not before the victim's husband sprang into action. “It looks like he's ready to give her another strike as she's going down and I ... tackled him,” he said. The Vermont couple had just parked outside of this restaurant, getting ready to have dinner with friends. Instead, the husband tells me he found himself subduing a violent young man, who smelled of alcohol. Burlington police had Brunelle, who was not driving, take a breathalyzer at the scene. There is no legal limit for public intoxication in the State of Vermont, but the legal limit to drive is .08 percent. Brunelle blew a .186 percent, police said. "The gentleman last night felt so compelled to take action for the crime that had just happened against his wife, and he did a great job,” Lt. Jonathan Young said. Investigators were already en route after a 53-year-old Burlington man was reportedly sucker punched just blocks away. Police believe it was Brunelle who did this moments before he hit the woman with the post, and took him into custody. “(It’s) not a common occurrence at that location,” Young said. “(It was a) random act, and it was very hectic because there were a lot of people walking by and they wanted to know what was going on." The victim and her husband tell NBC5 they’re grateful to the police and fire department responders who helped at the scene, and that the whole ordeal was a wake-up call to keep their wits about them -- even in quiet Vermont. "You know, your wife's being assaulted,” he said. “It was really unbelievable." Police said Brunelle was arraigned today in court. Investigators said he was charged with aggravated assault and the court dropped the charge to two counts of simple assault. Brunelle was later released into the custody of his parents, who police said were also in court Wednesday morning for his arraignment. Police do not believe drugs played a role in either incident.