Commissioner's Wife 'Accidentally' Pours Soda On Reporter: Police

SUMMERVILLE, GA — The wife of a northwest Georgia county commissioner is potentially being charged with assault after she poured a drink on the head of a reporter before a public meeting on Friday.

An incident report from the Summerville Police Department shows officers were dispatched to a county budget meeting on Friday at 4:30 p.m. in regard to a reported assault.

Officers spoke with the victim, who is named as Casie Bryant, 39, and a reporter for AllOnGeorgia, and said her clothing was covered in a dark liquid. Witnesses confirmed the victim's story of what happened and also said after the wife, named as Abbey Winters, 35, said multiple times that the reporter "deserved it."

Winters said she would speak with police with her lawyer, and later said she "accidentally poured the drink on her head after stumbling/tripping near her."

Bryant said in the police report she wanted criminal charges to be pursued, so warrants were obtained from the Chattooga County Sheriff’s Office for disorderly conduct and simple battery against Winters, so she could turn herself into the police. As of Friday afternoon, she had not yet turned herself in.

Delvis Dutton, owner of AllOnGeorgia, thanked the police department for taking the matter seriously, the website reported.

“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," Dutton said on the website. "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.”

AllOnGeorgia was filming at the time of the incident, and posted the video online.

Chattooga County’s Commissioner is Jason Winters, the government said on its website. Winters, a local businessman, was elected to serve as Chattooga County’s sole commissioner in 2008.