Melee Erupts Between Mayor and Council Member
By: Mario Boone
Updated: August 21, 2009
Garland City Mayor Yvonne Dockery says city councilman Clifton Rooters charged at her in a recent council meeting. Dockery says she feared for her life. Witnesses say the mayor grabbed a steel pipe to fight back, a charge the mayor doesn't entirely dispute.
The near brawl involved the mayor's daughter and other relatives, and Councilman Rooters and his wife. Lafayette County Press reporter Tommy Goodwin described the scene as chaotic. Goodwin tells me after Rooters charged at the mayor, several of the mayor's relatives stormed into city hall. Tension grew so thick, two Miller County deputies had to come in to restore order.
All the drama is over the mayor's paycheck. Dockery claims Rooters and the new city treasurer won't sign her check. Dockery faces a September theft trial for cashing her city check earlier this year without proper signatures. She says all the fuss is due to council members' personal vendettas against her.
We tried to contact Clifton Rooters, but our efforts failed. He didn't respond to my message requesting a comment.
