Diamondhead POA president files assault charge against mayor

DIAMONDHEAD, Miss. (WLOX) - The president of Diamondhead’s Property Owners Association on Monday filed a simple assault charge against the city’s mayor, Tommy Schafer. It comes almost a week after a confrontation between the two following an official city/POA meeting known as the Community Collaborative. That meeting happened September 4 at the Diamondhead County Club.

Since then, rumors of a physical altercation have been swirling on social media and around Diamondhead. Monday, the rumors were verified when POA President Bob Marthouse filed the assault complaint in Municipal Court. The criminal affidavit alleges that Schafer pushed Marthouse, “knocking him down causing him to fall over chairs landing on the ground back first.”

Mayor Schafer’s attorney, Tim Holleman said, “We have not even seen the charge, but there’s no substance to it.”

Holleman says anyone can file a complaint, and it doesn’t prove anything.

“It’s nothing more than an allegation. It must be proven in court,” he said. “We look forward to putting people under oath and letting them testify.”

The Diamondhead Property Owners Association put a statement out Monday on Facebook saying, “This turn of events saddens us. This incident occurs at the most critical time in our community where we all need to pull together. With regard to the incident details, President Marthouse and the individuals who witnessed the event have made their statements to law enforcement. We will now allow the justice system to do its job.”

The statement goes on to say “President Marthouse optimistically notes that ‘The Community Collaborative has been highly successful in developing real teamwork and in addressing our shared issues. Based on our ongoing discussions with the city, we fully expect this growing spirit of cooperation to continue for the benefit of all who live here.’”

Holleman said he isn’t sure if there is a video of the incident, but he hopes there is.

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