A Massachusetts mayor who campaigned on a tough crime agenda is now facing domestic violence charges after allegedly biting her husband and attacking him with a gasket scraper.
Taunton Mayor Shaunna O’Connell, 54, has been charged with one count of assault on a family member, a felony, and one count of assault with a dangerous weapon for the alleged violent episode. reports the Taunton Daily Gazette.
According to local police, the incident occurred after she and her husband Ted got into an argument over a “marital issue” that “eventually turned physical” on Friday night.
Ted had called 911 about the “active disturbance” at their Worcester Street home and told police at the scene that his wife had bitten him, hit him with a gasket scraper and jumped on the hood of his car to stop him from driving away. according to a police report.
But he now says he regrets his decision to call police and that he supported his wife when she pleaded not guilty to the charges against her on Monday.
Taunton Mayor Shaunna O’Connell has been charged for allegedly biting her husband, Ted, and attacking him with a gasket scraper. They are pictured with their daughters
Taunton Police Officer George Lozado said in his police report that officers responded to the O’Connells’ Worcester Street home shortly after 8 p.m. Friday and found Ted on his cell phone in the driveway.
When the officers asked Ted what had happened, he told them that he and the mayor had gotten into an argument about their marriage. He claimed that she had bitten him.
“Mr. O’Connell stated that during their argument, his wife Shaunna bit him on his left forearm and then took a small crowbar/gasket cleaner tool and struck him on his right hand/knuckle,” Lozado wrote.
He noted that he saw ‘an open wound on the left forearm consistent with [Ted] ‘bitten’, and ‘multiple open wounds’ on the knuckles of his right hand.
‘Mr O’Connell further stated that he attempted to leave the residence in his car, during which his wife jumped onto the hood of his car, preventing him from leaving.’
“I saw a small dent in the front portion of the hood and also a bent broom in the driveway,” Lozado said.
But he noted that Ted did not claim to have been hit by the broom.
Ted has since expressed regret for calling the police and stood by his wife when she appeared in court on Monday.
He then refused medical attention and refused to file a restraining order against his wife, telling officers he was concerned for her well-being.
When police entered the home, Shaunna initially told officers she had “no intention” of opening the upstairs door after they wanted to speak to her.
But Lozado said he was able to “look through a little crack and see Shaunna on the phone, and she didn’t appear to have any injuries.”
At one point, the mayor relented and allowed officers to enter to question her as she sat on a bed, the police report said.
According to police, Shaunna grabbed a gasket cleaner and hit her husband with it on his right hand/knuckle area
She repeatedly said she did not know what had happened. When officers specifically asked her what had caused her husband’s injuries, Shaunna allegedly said she did not know again. She later added that he had been “verbally abusive to her.”
While she was being questioned, the acting police chief arrived on the scene, Lozado wrote.
The police chief was then told that there was sufficient probable cause to arrest the mayor on charges of domestic violence. The police chief informed the mayor that she was under arrest.
She then allegedly grabbed a pair of shoes before being handcuffed and led outside.
“When she left the residence, she tried to see her husband again and began yelling at him,” Lozado wrote.
Shaunna tried to downplay the incident the next day, saying she and her husband had been married for 27 years.
The mayor was then put in a police car and “placed in a secure cell pending his bail.”
The next day, Shaunna attempted to downplay the incident in a statement through her campaign spokesperson.
“Ted and I have been married for 27 years,” she said, according to WPRI.
‘Like all couples, we’ve had challenges. We’ve worked through marital problems.
‘Ted called the police during an argument and regrets that decision.’
Ted later agreed when he was seen holding his wife’s hand on Monday as they left the courthouse together.
“I apologize for calling the police,” he said. “I apologize to my wife and the people of Taunton. It was a big mistake.”
O’Connell is currently serving her third two-year term as mayor and previously served as a Republican state representative
O’Connell was first elected mayor in 2019 and is now serving her third two-year term.
She previously served as a Republican state representative, winning her first election by just 31 votes. She accused her Democratic opponent of being soft on crime.
As a representative, she pushed to reinstate the death penalty in Massachusetts, introduced legislation to detain immigrants and opposed a judicial nominee who supported criminal justice reform.
“Massachusetts has a reputation for being lenient when it comes to crime, and unfortunately that is detrimental to public safety,” she said in 2018.
She later made headlines when her daughter disappeared from an Ohio treatment center last year.
Columbus police found Riley O’Connell alone and reportedly unharmed five days later as she wandered the city. She later moved back to Taunton to live with her parents.
Shaunna pleaded not guilty on Monday and was released on her own recognizance, but was given an order not to abuse her husband.
The mayor must appear in court again on September 12.