Update October 2013: The felony charge against Yasha Lichtschein was amended to misdemeanor battery and dismissed.
A UF freshman was arrested downtown on a felony offense for punching a man in the face early Wednesday morning.
Gainesville Police were already in the area of Status Nightclub, 17 SE First St., when the victim, whose name was not released, walked up to them bleeding from his face, said GPD spokeswoman Tscharna Senn.
The victim told police he and Yasha Lichtschein, 19, had been arguing at the bar, but that Lichtschein made things physical by punching him in the face.
Although the victim’s lip was “severely split,” according to Senn, police saw no need for him to be taken to a hospital.
Police found Lichtschein and interviewed him about the confrontation, then immediately arrested him, she said.
Lichtschein spent the night in the Alachua County Jail but was released on his own recognizance at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Lichtschein has been charged with one count of felony battery resulting from bodily harm.
