According to Stevensville Mayor Brandon Dewey, he was verbally assaulted in his office last Friday by Matt Barker, husband of Council member Stacie Barker.
Dewey said that he had spoken to Ms. Barker the evening before about having to remove some comments placed on the town’s Facebook page by her husband. He said he told her that her husband was entitled to his opinion, but that profanity is just not allowed.
“I wanted her to be aware,” said Dewey, “and I told her that if it continued we would have to ban him from the page.”
Dewey said that on Friday Mr. Barker barged into his office in a hostile manner and shouted at him.
“He was leaning over my desk and shouting right into my face,” said Dewey.” He was saying that we couldn’t ban him from Facebook because he had a right to free speech. I told him that profanity was not allowed and he said that he could say [the F word] any time he wants and told me if I had anything to say I should say it to him and not to his wife.”
Three clerks were in the office when it happened and witnessed the event. One went to the back office to get Police Chief James Marble, but Barker left immediately after his short outburst and was already gone by the time Marble showed up in the front office. The clerks were shocked and upset by what they had witnessed.
Dewey said that he has not yet decided what action to take about the event but that the town’s attorney was aware of what transpired.
Pete Johnson says
Why don’t we hear Matt Barker’s side of the story. Let’s not just report one side of what is going on in the City of Stevensville.