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Jeremy London Charged With Spousal Battery

PALM SPRINGS (CBS) — Actor Jeremy London faces charges of spousal battery for allegedly grabbing his wife's hair and pulling her to the ground, then hitting her several times on the side of the head during an argument about their son.

London was charged Monday with a misdemeanor count of battery of a spouse or cohabitant, according to court records. London, who had roles in TV dramas "Party of Five" and "7th Heaven," was not in custody and no court date has been set.

Palm Spring police Detective Michael Studer says the victim, identified as "Jane Doe" in the criminal complaint, called police the morning of Nov. 18 to claim that London, 39, hurt her as they fought outside London's car, while their son was in the vehicle.

London, who stayed overnight at the home they argued in front of, put the couple's son, still wearing pajamas, into his car. London told his estranged wife he was taking their son to breakfast, according to Studer.

"(She) said (their son) was yelling, 'I don't want to go,'" Studer wrote in a report.

When she grabbed London's backpack from his car in attempt to stop them from leaving, "London grabbed her by her hair, pulling her to the ground," Studer wrote. "... London hit her several times on the side of the head in an attempt to take the backpack away. (She) said eventually she let go of the backpack and got up off the ground to get (the boy) out of the car."

London left immediately after the incident. Studer also noted that the child told a police officer his father pulled his mother's hair and "my dad was a bad boy."

London has a child with Melissa Cunningham, whom he married in 2006 and from whom he is separated.

In June 2010, London made headlines when he said he was kidnapped and robbed in Palm Springs and forced to buy drugs and alcohol at gunpoint before escaping from his abductors. One of the men involved pleaded guilty to a felony charge of false imprisonment and a misdemeanor count of unlawful taking of a vehicle in March. He was sentenced to 16 months in prison, but with time already served and other credits, he was released from a Banning jail the day he entered the plea, according to court records.

District Attorney's Office spokesman John Hall said London could get up to a year in county jail if convicted of the battery charge.

(©2012 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)

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