Merrill man taken into custody following incident at local care facility

Tuesday afternoon, officers responded to a report of an intoxicated visitor at a local care facility. Upon arrival, officers met with facility staff who indicated 59-year-old Bert Ellis had arrived at the facility in a heavily intoxicated state. Ellis asked to speak with a facility resident but was asked to leave due to his intoxicated state. Ellis then reportedly departed the facility in a pick-up truck and was stopped a short time later by another officer.
According to officer notes, prior to officer arrival Ellis reportedly struck another party twice in the jaw with a closed fist, while the party attempted to convince Ellis to leave the facility.
Upon being stopped, Ellis reportedly refused to comply with field sobriety testing but submitted to a preliminary breath test which yielded a breath alcohol content of .28. As a result, Ellis was taken into custody on charges of Operating Under the Influence, Disorderly Conduct and was transported to the Lincoln County Jail.