Mishawaka police are investigating an alleged assault at a St. Joseph County Republican Party event on Saturday.
After Donald Trump easily beat Kamala Harris and Republicans swept all statewide and most local races, Saturday should have been a day of celebration for local Republicans.
But Republican County Council Member Dan Schaetzle told police that violence marred the party’s monthly meeting. Schaetzle told police that County Party Vice-Chair Marvin “Joe” Layne assaulted him at the gathering at Enzo’s Venue, a banquet hall in JMS Plaza on Grape Road.
Mishawaka Police Spokesman Sgt. Steve Headley said the case has been forwarded to the department’s detective bureau for investigation of potential criminal charges against Layne. Headley says Schaetzle said he grabbed the mic to counter some things that another speaker had said about him.
"During his talking to the crowd, Joe Layne allegedly said, 'Your time's up,'" Headley said. "When Schaetzle refused, Joe Layne allegedly snatched the microphone from him and then Schaetzle claims that he shoved him."
Headley says several hours later, Schaetzle called police to report a battery or assault, and then a bit later after that took himself to a local hospital for treatment of back pain.
Party Chair Jackie Horvath did not reply to WVPE's interview request. In a written statement, Horvath said "personal disagreements unfortunately arose between elected officials, with both exchanging remarks that were not in the spirit of unity and celebration that we had intended for the meeting."
Horvath's statement said that, "In an attempt to manage the situation, the vice chair intervened by removing the microphone. This action was not appropriate for our setting, and we apologize for any discomfort it may have caused."
Horvath did not identify the elected official that Schaetzle had the dispute with.
