This is the shocking moment a Georgia county commissioner’s wife poured a drink over a reporter’s head after she questioned whether they’d used local funds to go on their honeymoon.
Video from news blog AllOnGeorgia shows Chattooga County Commissioner Jason Winters’ jaw drop as his spouse Abby Winters, 35, dumps the beverage over the head of their reporter Casie Bryant, 39.
‘Oh my god,’ the commissioner says at the conference table ahead of a public county budget meeting on Friday. Nodding his head and pointing at the action, he adds: ‘Every bit of this has been brought…’
As he stands up and walks away from the table, where he left newspaper coverage they were discussion during the meeting, a woman believed to be Winters is heard saying: ‘I’m sick of it.’
Chattooga County Commissioner Jason Winters’ jaw drops as his spouse Abby Winters, 35, dumps a drink over the head of reporter Casie Bryant, 39
‘She brought it on herself,’ a voice outside of the camera frame says as another replies: ‘By saying he went to France?’
A woman responds: ‘Oh, yes b***h.’
Another attendee is heard responding: ‘Oh classy.’
Responding police said they found Bryant outside in her car with a dark liquid over her hair and jacket after she immediately walked away from the meeting in shock.
Four witnesses present at the meeting offered police statements alleging Mrs Winters said at least twice that Bryant ‘deserved it’. Two of the witnesses were from local news outlets, including radio station WZQZ – FM 99.1 – AM 1180 Radio.
The radio station reported that ‘Mrs. Winters was sitting next to her husband at a conference table when people began to arrive for the meeting. Mrs. Winters got up from her seat and went to the other side of the room’.
‘WZQZ News was at the meeting and observed Mrs. Winters pour the soft-drink on Ms. Bryant,’ the radio station reported. ‘After pouring the drink on Ms. Bryant, Mrs. Winters said, “You deserve that (expletive)”. Ms. Bryant did not respond, but began gathering her belongings to leave the meeting.
‘As Ms. Bryant was leaving, Mrs. Winters was escorted to a private office by Public Works Director Joe Reed. As she was walking back to the office, Mrs. Winters said “she deserved that”.’
Video from news blog AllOnGeorgia shows Chattooga County Commissioner Jason Winters’ jaw drop and he says: ‘Oh my god’
A police report stated that none of the witnesses heard the victim say anything that might have antagonized Mrs Winters.
However a friend of Bryant’s said the altercation may have stemmed from an earlier post on the reporter’s Facebook page where she was asked to investigate Jason Winters’ possible misuse of funds.
‘The most classless acts I’ve ever witnessed in my whole life, and I’ve been a lot of places,’ Chattooga High teacher, Paula Arden, told Channel 9 News about what she saw at the meeting, adding that she defended her friend Bryant.
‘I looked just in time to see her dump it on Casie’s head, and Casie just sat there — we all were shocked.’
Mrs Winters told police in a statement that she tripped and stumbled causing the drink to accidentally spill.
Police state that when three officers responded to the scene after a 911 call, the commissioner and his wife had refused to speak to them without consulting a lawyer first but later made the statement at their lawyer’s office.
Bryant later confirmed the witness accounts to the Summerville Police Department and claimed she heard someone saying the drink looks good on her.
Mrs Winters is now charged with Disorderly Conduct and Simple Battery. She turned herself in, and was pictured smiling in her booking mugshot.
She has since been released from jail after posting bail that amounted to $1,520.
A radio station present in the meeting reported: ‘After pouring the drink on Ms. Bryant, Mrs. Winters said, “You deserve that (expletive)”.’ AllOnGeorgia reporter Bryant is pictured
‘What happened at the budget meeting today was completely inappropriate and I’m disappointed to see not only the behavior of those involved, but the excuses made for the behavior after the fact,’ AllOnGeorgia said in a statement.
‘The media plays an integral role in ensuring transparency and these types of antics are dangerous to open government and a disservice to the people it serves.’
Locals called for the commission to resign or be fired after the incident.
‘I honestly dont seen any outcome, that doesn’t include Jason resigning from office,’ one person commented on a video shared by AllOnGeorgia.
Jordon Butler commented: ‘Jason winters needs to be removed from office immediately he is a joke his budget is a joke and has been for years.’
‘When are you people going to wake up and get this left wing snowflake out of office, he has done nothing for this county except watch the elderly and fixed income citizens suffer due to higher tax rates and garage fee’s, unless you credit him for the purchase of a theater and paradise gardens just for a little revenue from liberal fairies,’ Robert Ponder commented.
‘And you know he condones this repulsive act his wife has done.’
In 2014 Winters was banned from the Democratic party for posting campaign signs for state Senator Jeff Mullis, a Republican from Walker County and for posting signs for Republican Governor Nathan Deal in the midterm election.
Earlier this year Winters was criticized for saying the county was doing better they had in the past 10 years, then admitting he may have to cut jobs.
Audit reports revealed that although more money was coming into the county, more was being spent than was coming in.