Police say a woman told her friend she’d give her ‘the dirty south treatment’ for saying her hair had fuzz in it, then maced and stabbed her

Arguments between friends over small comments usually end with hurt feelings, not hospital visits. Police in Decatur, Illinois, say one remark about a woman’s hair escalated into a beating, a pepper spray attack, and a stabbing, according to Law&Crime. The suspect is now facing three felony charges.

Cynthia Denise Dear, 44, has been charged with three counts of aggravated battery. The counts allege that she used a deadly weapon, caused great bodily harm, and committed the act in a public place, according to court records. Dear is accused of attacking her friend on the morning of Oct. 11 after the friend commented on her hair. Each of the three counts is a felony under Illinois law.

A witness told police the altercation began when the friend said, “Your hair has fuzz in it.” The victim later told officers that she did not mean the remark to be provoking or mean-spirited. She said she just made a comment. However, Dear became upset and allegedly said something like she was going to give her “the dirty south treatment.”

Police say the Decatur woman came back to attack her friend a second time

According to police, the victim started walking home after the exchange. Dear allegedly got out of a truck, struck the woman, and then returned to the vehicle. As the victim kept walking away, police say Dear came back and pepper-sprayed her in the back of the head before jumping onto her back, according to the police report.

While Dear was on her back, the victim told officers she saw her holding a can of mace and a silver knife with a black handle. The woman said she shrugged Dear off and pinned her to the ground. However, she soon realized she had been stabbed. A witness saw blood on the victim’s chest and ran to a nearby Burger King to get help.

A responding officer noted a fresh cut on the victim’s upper left chest. Paramedics took her to a local hospital, as the wound needed stitches. A similar case of violence over a passing remark unfolded when a woman set her childhood friend on fire over a comment about staying in the kitchen.

Officers found Dear inside the truck later that evening. Police say they recovered a bloody knife from the vehicle and found a can of pepper spray on the ground next to it. Dear was then taken into custody and brought to the police station for questioning about the alleged attack on her friend.

At the police station, Dear allegedly asked how the victim was doing before telling officers, “I didn’t mean to stab her. It was a mistake.” That statement could become a key point in the case, as the charges against her include allegations that she caused great bodily harm with a deadly weapon.

Dear has not been convicted of any crime, and the allegations against her have not been tested in court. She remains held at the Macon County Jail without bond, according to jail records, and the victim has not been publicly identified. Details of the case were first reported by local outlets Decatur Radio and WCIA, which cited court documents and police accounts.

She is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing on Oct. 28, where a judge is expected to carefully review whether prosecutors have enough evidence for the three felony counts to move forward.