ST. LOUIS (KMOX) -- Three months after fists flew outside a Russ Carnahan town hall forum in south St. Louis county, still no one has been charged.
While the August event was about aging and senior care issues, controversy over Congressial attempts at health care reform dominated the mood of the participants, raising tensions and tone. Outside, membes of the spillover crowd entered into heated exchanges, mostly between self-described Tea Party protestors and those belonging to the Service Employees International Union. As the situation grew more hostile, a shoving match began.
38-year-old Kenneth Gladney, a conservative activist from St. Louis, said he was attacked as he handed out yellow so-called Gadsen flags, which bear the "Don't Tread on Me" snake and logo, that dates back to the American Revolution.
The activist suffered injuries to his back and face. Gladney, who is black, also claimed that one of his attackers, used a racial slur.
Six people were arrested by St. Louis County Police, with at least two suspects booked on suspicion of assault. But the person who will decide whether to file charges, St. Louis County Counselor Patricia Reddington, is still sorthing it all out. "There were multiple altercations and police involvement," Reddington said. "We're looking at the whole evening and the charges that may be filed as a result of that."
Redding says there were half a dozen possible criminal incidents at that event and she plans to announce her findings all at the same time. She did not give KMOX a timetable for the announcement. But, according to Reddington, the incident, "definitely has not been swept under the rug."
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