Crime blotter: blind rage

On May 5th Minneapolis police officers were dispatched to an apartment on the 3100 block of 15th Avenue South to investigate an assault. Upon arriving the cops spoke with the victim, identified only as E.L.S. in court documents, who could not open her eyes and reported difficulty breathing. She told the cops that she'd been hanging out in the apartment with three other people. One of the individuals, whom she knew as "Coco," had previously threatened her. E.L.S. went to use the bathroom. Upon opening the door to exit the bathroom, she told the cops that Coco threw a cup of bleach in her face. The liquid got in her eyes, ears, and throat. Three days after the incident, according to a criminal complaint filed in Hennepin County District Court, E.L.S. still could not see. Coco was subsequently identified as 36-year-old Matella Charis Phelps. She's been charged with one count of third degree assault. According to Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension records, Phelps has nine prior criminal convictions dating back to 1993.