A 71-year-old woman was arrested after she allegedly attacked a pregnant black servicewoman over a confrontation about a parking space.
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Cellphone footage of the encounter started circulating online over the weekend, showing the older woman, identified as Judy James Tucker, lunging and slapping at two black service members in Cheddarโs Scratch Kitchen in Macon, Ga. Deputies who arrived on the scene determined that โTucker was the primary aggressor,โ The Telegraph notes, but of course, thatโs not what she was trying to tell deputies.
According to a write-up by one of the deputies, Tucker, who was with her son and her daughter at the time, told deputies that the scuffle โstarted over a parking spotโ because โshe was white and it was a race issue.โ
The two servicewomenโStephanie Mitchell, 34, and Treasure Sharpe, 27, both blackโhad a different story to tell.
Mitchell told responding officers that she and Sharpe were backing into a parking space when Tuckerโs son told them โthey should learn how to parkโ and โcalled them dumb bitches,โ the report indicated.
This harassment continued inside the restaurant, where Tuckerโs son approached them once again and called them โblack lesbian bitches.โ
Fed up at this point, Sharpe started recording the incident. In the video, Tuckerโs daughter could be seen lunging at Sharpe, trying to block the cellphone.
โAre you aware that you assaulted my mother?โ Tuckerโs daughter could be heard saying to Sharpe and Mitchell. โAre you aware? My mother is bleeding.โ
โYou were getting in our way while we tried to park,โ Tucker said. โDonโt you take a picture of me! You do not have the right to take a picture of me.โ
As Mitchell stood between Tucker and Sharpe, Tucker โlunged and struck Sharpe in the face,โ the deputyโs report noted.
Thatโs when Sharpe pointed out that she was pregnant.
โIโm pregnant! Look at me, Iโm pregnant! Youโre pushing a pregnant lady!โ Sharpe said in the video.
Tucker flippantly responded, โWell, my husband is handicapped!โ
Well, so much for respecting members of the military, I suppose. I canโt help wondering how Tucker feels about NFL players kneeling for the national anthem ... I have so many questions.
Anyway, as reported earlier, deputies made it quite clear that Tucker was the one to blame for the altercation.
โWith all of the lunging and slapping happening, it was never shown through cell phone video that Mrs. Mitchell or Mrs. Sharpe did anything wrong,โ the deputyโs report said. โIn fact, Mrs. Mitchell tried, without fail, to stop the attack on Mrs. Sharpe.โ
Tucker was taken away and charged with simple assault, but had bonded out by Monday. However, according to The Telegraph, the attack is still being investigated and more charges may be pending.
In the meantime, Darden Restaurants, which owns Cheddarโs, released a statement saying that the Tuckers are no longer welcome in the establishment.
โWe were appalled by the behavior of the individuals who confronted the two female service members. Such behavior flies in the face of our values and those individuals are no longer welcome in our restaurant,โ the statement read.
Tucker is also facing repercussions in her personal life. According to The Telegraph, she is an artist who has taught art classes at several Macon colleges. Mercer University, one of those schools, released a statement saying that she would not be teaching there again.
โShe has occasionally taught an art class in the past, but will not be teaching at Mercer in the future,โ university spokesperson Kyle Sears said.
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