Drunk Fresno dad booked in felony assault of babysitter, police say

A reportedly intoxicated Fresno dad was booked on felony assault charges after a dispute with babysitter went bad Sunday night, police reported.

He was identified as Michael Argentino, 33.

The incident took place in the 2900 block of North Fruit Avenue after Argentino and his wife came to the house to pick up their young child, who was being cared for by relatives, said Sgt. Jeff La Blue.

The relatives reportedly declined to turn over the child because the parents were under the influence. That apparently prompted the dad to start fighting with one of the relatives. The altercation escalated into a felony assault, police said.

Another family member stepped in to stop the fight and struck the dad with a pool cue, to little effect. That family member then retrieved a survival-type knife to defend himself against the dad, inflicting superficial wounds before police arrived.

The family member originally assaulted by the dad was taken to the hospital due to the severity of his injuries, La Blue said. Police determined that the other family member, who used the pool cue and knife, acted in self-defense.

This story was originally published March 2, 2020 at 10:30 AM.