Former Arizona GOP Chair Kelli Ward is the subject of an assault complaint filed with the Phoenix Police Department in January.
Ward allegedly struck a member, Laura Schafer (spelled elsewhere in the report as “Schaufer”), during the Precinct Committeeman elections meeting at Dream City Church in north Phoenix. Schafer reported to Phoenix Police that Ward had leaned over and struck her with a fist holding two papers to the right side of her head and shoulder after Schafer had yelled out to Ward that Ward was no longer a member.
This incident occurred after Ward took the mic from another member, much to the chagrin of GOP members, who yelled at her that she had “cut in line” and accused Ward of being a “dictator.”
Welp. Looks like all is well at the #AZGOP meeting today.
Kelli Ward took a mic of out someone’s hand and allegedly almost got into a fistfight?
Bless it. 🍿pic.twitter.com/7kCTGpUBer
— Renee (@PettyLupone) January 27, 2024
Schafer didn’t report any injuries from the interaction.
Police have submitted the incident report to prosecutors.
Ward’s taking of the microphone at the meeting had apparently spurred Schafer to speak up against the former chair.
Schafer’s husband, Michael, who was sitting next to her during the alleged incident, and another woman named Patricia Porter, seated behind her, confirmed Schafer’s account of events to police.
The Schafers and Porter also confirmed that they had known Ward for years due to their lengthy involvement with the GOP, and that they had engaged in face-to-face meetings with her on multiple occasions.
Another officer mentioned in the incident report confirmed through a review of security tapes that Ward did strike Schafer, and that the hit constituted an assault. In the video, Ward turned around to face Schafer, leaned over a chair, and struck Schafer.
Aggressive approaches to fellow GOPers wouldn’t be totally out of character for the Ward family.
However, in Ward’s interview with police, the former chair dismissed Schafer’s interpretation of her physical touch.
Ward described Schafer as a “crazy lady” that had yelled at her. Ward alleged that Schafer had yelled that she no longer had privilege because she wasn’t the state party chair, and that Ward had replied that she was glad about that before tapping Schafer on the shoulder.
Michael Schafer is President of Compliance Testing, an international regulatory and compliance testing and product certification company, while Laura Schafer is a homemaker.
Revelation of the assault charge came out around the same time that another legal proceeding against the Wards dropped this week.
On Wednesday and Thursday, the Wards and Arizona’s other Trump electors were subpoenaed to testify before a grand jury put together by Attorney General Kris Mayes.
Arizona attorney general has bad news for Trump's fake electors — AG Kris Mayes doubled down on her vow to investigate those involved in the plot to give Arizona's 2020 electoral votes to Trump. https://t.co/x7gLQQ6Goz
— AZ Attorney General Kris Mayes (@AZAGMayes) March 2, 2023
Look at these stupid geriatric clowns at a large AZGOP meeting
Best chance to upend the looming Dim colossus in many years, and these bluehaired Depends idiots will blow it
azgop is reaping its rewards of kicking out all Trump people
burn gop burn
Ward needs to go away. She got her millions from running AZGOP politics and bought her charter boat down in Mexico. Go hangout with the invader country.