A routine town hall meeting in a St. Louis County recreation center spiraled into chaos when a long-simmering political feud between local Democrats erupted into a physical fight caught on video.
According to the New York Post, Missouri state Sen. Angela Walton Mosley and St. Louis County Councilwoman Shalanda Webb were involved in a violent confrontation following a meeting at the Bellefontaine Neighbors rec center last month, footage obtained by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch shows.
The clash unfolded in full view of stunned attendees as the elected officials grappled, pulled hair, and exchanged punches.
Mosley’s sister, Rochelle Walton Gray — herself a former county councilwoman — also became involved before bystanders rushed in to break up the fight, which lasted roughly 40 seconds, according to the video.
The confrontation occurred after a Sept. 25 meeting as Webb was attempting to leave the auditorium. Video shows Webb, wearing a leopard-print maxi dress and glasses, waving a pen inches from Mosley’s face during a heated, audio-less exchange.
Mosley, dressed in black, then appears to reach out and grab Webb by the throat, pushing her against a wall. That moment triggered the brawl, with Webb charging forward as the two women began wrestling across the room.
The footage shows Webb grabbing Mosley by the hair as both women throw multiple blows to the head. Gray, wearing a blue top, jumps in to assist her sister as onlookers rush to intervene. The women are eventually separated.
Webb later insisted the video backs up her version of events.
“It shows that I acted solely to protect myself after being physically attacked,” she said in a statement to the Post-Dispatch, adding that she “did not initiate this confrontation.”
Mosley and Gray, however, tell a different story in their own lawsuits. The sisters claim they never threatened Webb and argue Mosley “maintained the dignity of her office” as a state senator during the incident.
Their civil filings seek $25,000 in damages, citing emotional trauma and public humiliation stemming from the altercation.
Webb has requested an order of protection against both Mosley and Gray, with a hearing scheduled for Jan. 29 in St. Louis County Circuit Court, according to the newspaper.
She has also asked the Bellefontaine Neighbors Police Department to pursue criminal charges. The matter was later referred to the Missouri Attorney General’s Office.
The women involved have a documented history of political disputes stretching back at least five years, the Post-Dispatch reported. All three now claim they acted in self-defense as the fallout from the shocking brawl continues to play out in court.
