Representative: Matt Gaetz Vows to Pursue Legal Action Against Woman Accused of Throwing Wine on Him
May 2 2023, Published 6:45 p.m. ET
A Tallahassee woman was charged with felony battery after she threw a glass of wine on Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz, RadarOnline.com has learned.
Selena Chambers, 41, emptied her glass on the Florida lawmaker when she saw him at a wine festival on Saturday.
According to a statement made to police by Blaine Odom, who was at the festival with Gaetz, Chambers was "swearing loudly" at the controversial congressman. As her mouth hurled expletives, she allegedly hurled a glass of wine at the lawmaker.
"Chambers then walked away yelling and flipping him off," Odom stated, according to the Walton County police report.
While Odom painted a picture of an alleged deranged woman, Chambers' recollection of events dramatically differed. At the time of her arrest, Chambers told an officer that she "was walking and tripped and spilled her drink on Representative Gaetz."
Chambers acknowledged that she recognized Gaetz before the alleged accidental encounter.
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Chambers' pal, Stacy Froeschner, who accompanied the Tallahassee woman to the wine festival, recalled hearing her friend curse at Gaetz as they walked past him. Other festival attendees alleged they witnessed Chambers throw her drink at the congressman.
The incident resulted in Chambers being arrested and charged with two counts of battery, with one count being a misdemeanor offense and the other a felony charge of battery of an elected official.
Chambers was booked on her charges, with her bail set at $1,000. She posted the bail and was released on Sunday morning.
Despite Gaetz and Odom only being splashed with wine, the lawmaker released a statement on Tuesday in regard to the woman who "assaulted" him.
The embattled representative pledged to pursue charges against Chambers in the name of upholding "the civility our community deserves."
"I will never allow the safety of Northwest Floridians to be comprised," Gaetz vowed in his statement.