Stuart Townsend arrested for domestic violence crime

Stuart Townsendfaces a crime charge for allegedly being physical with his wife and refusing to let her go in a dispute … TMZ has learned.

Police forces tell us that the actor 's neighbors called 911 to complain of screams coming from his home in Santa Monica. When the police arrived, Townsend and his wife were able to argue in front of the house.

We are told that the officers separated the two, but Townsend would have warned his wife to say nothing. Our sources say that she's complaining of pain in her arms but that she did not need medical attention.

The police continued to question the couple and learned that they had had a verbal fight that had escalated. We were told that Townsend grabbed his wife by the arms and at one point … refused to let her go when she tried.

The actor was arrested and sentenced for domestic violence. He also faces two counts of misdemeanor: unlawful imprisonment and the deterrence of reporting a crime.

He was released after paying $ 50,000 bail.

We took out Stuart and his wife Friday night and they swept the incident and came out of a restaurant hand in hand saying that everything was fine.

Townsend is best known for his role as Dorian Gray in the 2003 action film, "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen". Of course, he also dated Charlize Theron for 9 years until they separate in 2010.

We reached out to Townsend and his wife. Stuart told us that they had had a strong argument, but that they had already solved their problems when the police arrived. He adds that "both of them" are looking forward to a quick and favorable resolution of this problem and a return to a quiet life as spouses and parents ".