Made to make your eyes water

*WARNING - Male Readers Take Care*

Wince-inducing stuff from Raleigh, North Carolina:

Police continue to investigate a Christmas party they say ended with a woman trying pull a man's genitals off.

That kind of opening line just makes you want to read on.

The victim's name is Kevin Russ (38) and the accused is called Rebecca Arnold (34).

It all started Monday night at a Christmas party hosted at the home of Tanya Nicole "Niki" Gardella, 32. Russ is Gardella's boyfriend. Arnold, who also goes by her married name, Rebecca Dawson, is a friend and was a guest at the party, Lillington Police Chief Frank Powers said.

The party continued into the early morning hours. The three had been drinking and were intoxicated, Powers said.

Drinking at a Christmas party? I think Chief Powers could be on to something there, don't you? Anyway, the juicy bits:

At some point, Gardella, Russ and Arnold got into a fight, and Arnold allegedly grabbed Russ' genitals with her hands. When police arrived at the house on Summerville-Mamers Road about 2 a.m., they found a disturbing, bloody scene.

"[Russ] was in pretty bad shape," Powers said.

Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow. Such understatement from Mr Powers. I daren't use my imagination. Did anyone actually see what happened?

"We are interviewing witnesses that were a little less intoxicated," he said.

Smart thinking. Nothing gets past this guy. "Super" Powers, they call him at the station.

I should say that if you're not quite sure what sort of disturbing, bloody scene to visualise, the article includes this useful paragraph:

Castration refers to cutting off the testicles, said Raj Pruthi, a urologist at UNC Hospitals. The testes are soft tissue where testosterone and sperm are made.

Ah, right. Ouch. Thanks, Doc!

Pruthi said it's unlikely Arnold could have pulled Russ' testicles off with her hands. "I've never heard of it," he said, explaining that the testes are attached deep into the pelvis. "It's pretty much impossible to do."

That, I guess, is a relief to know.

So what happened to this woman?

Arnold was charged with malicious castration and assault inflicting serious bodily injury. She also was charged with malicious conduct by a prisoner and injury to personal property because she allegedly spit on the arresting officer.

Clearly a classy lady.

But isn't this the oddest bit of all? They actually have a specific offence of "malicious castration" in North Carolina. Is it not covered by "assault inflicting serious bodily injury" as I'm sure it would be in Britain? How many cases do they get each year?

On second thoughts, it doesn't bear thinking about. Happy Hogmanay!