A group of children, riding their bikes through a residential neighborhood, was chased by a screaming man armed with a baseball bat, Port St. Lucie police said.
Elvis Stephens Jr., 26, was arrested June 4 on one charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and one charge of child abuse. He was booked at St. Lucie County Jail.
Stephens, after screaming from his driveway, chased the children down Fears Avenue as they pedaled away, according to an arrest affidavit. He swung his bat at one of the children, “barely missing him.”
Port St. Lucie police officers arrived after 7 p.m. at Fears Avenue. Stephens was sitting on a plastic lawn chair with a wooden baseball bat in his lap, police said.
Stephens was asked multiple times to drop the bat on the ground before he complied, according to the arrest affidavit. He also had a pair of scissors on his lap, which he put into his pocket, the affidavit said. He was asked multiple times to put the scissors on the ground.
Stephens dropped the scissors after one officer unholstered his taser, although the officer refrained from pointing the taser at him, the affidavit said.
Florida mall demolition begins with former Macy’s
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The Indian River Mall demolition has begun, June 2, 2026, starting at the former anchor store, Macy’s. The demolition will clear the way for the mall’s anticipated redevelopment.
(KAILA JONES/TCPALM)
Stephens, who “appears to suffer from a mental illness,” was handcuffed and arrested.
The child who was attacked was “in a fear for his life” and was “in a continued state of disturbance” when police arrived, the affidavit said.
Jack Randall is TCPalm’s economy and real estate reporter. You can reach him at jack.randall@tcpalm.com.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Florida man arrested for chasing kids with baseball bat