Quantcast
,

Norwalk Dems battle in City Hall parking lot

Former Norwalk Common Councilman Bill Krummel sports a shiner Tuesday after a reported altercation with Norwalk Democratic Town Committee Chairwoman Amanda Brown Monday night in the City Hall parking lot. (Contributed photo.)

NORWALK, Conn. – An altercation Monday night between Norwalk Democratic Town Committee Chairwoman Amanda Brown, former Norwalk Common Councilman Bill Krummel and Regina Krummel drew Norwalk Police and paramedics to City Hall parking lot, but charges are not likely to be filed, Norwalk Police Chief Thomas Kulhawik said.

Bill Krummel, 84, said he was punched in the eye by Brown, 38, an account that was corroborated by a witness, Gordon Tully. Regina Krummel, 82, said she was pushed to the ground and gashed her elbow. Both Krummels declined medical attention at the scene and on Tuesday said they will be fine.

Norwalk Democratic Town Committee Chairwoman Amanda Brown speaks at a recent Common Council meeting.
Norwalk Democratic Town Committee Chairwoman Amanda Brown speaks at a recent Common Council meeting.

Brown declined to comment.

Mr. Krummel said he slapped Brown.

The incident was reported to police at 7:26 p.m. Monday by Tully, who said he was not there with the Krummels.

Tully said he was going into City Hall and heard a “very loud argument” between the Krummels and Brown.

“Whether anybody pushed anybody or not I can’t remember,” he said. “They were yelling at the top of their voices. At some point Bill Krummel said something that offended Amanda. She threw a right cross to the cheek and drew blood. Somebody may have been down but I’m a terrible eyewitness, I don’t remember.”

The Krummels say the incident started because Mrs. Krummel would like to run to be on the Board of Education, but Brown did not include her on a list that was sent out this week.

Mrs. Krummel said she called Brown and left a voice mail that said she wanted to speak with her, without saying why. She said she informed Brown there was a District E meeting that night at City Hall, that if she was in the vicinity she could come by and talk to her about it, but, if not, she could call until midnight.

The Krummels said when they arrived at City Hall for the 7:30 p.m. meeting, Brown was there.

Mrs. Krummel said she started to get out of the car and Brown ran up, waving a printout of an email Mrs. Krummel had sent in April.

“She was waving it in my face as I got out of the car and screaming at me,” Mrs. Krummel said.

That email referred to Mrs. Krummel’s desire to run for the BOE. According to Mrs. Krummel, the email said, “If there is an opening for an At-Large Board of Education candidate I’d like to throw my hat in the ring.”

Brown had highlighted segments of the email, and was saying, “You said ‘if,’” the Krummels said.

“I was shocked,” Mrs. Krummel said. “All I wanted to do was have a conversation with her. I’m not on the DTC, I just wanted to have to a conversation with her.”

Mrs. Krummel said Brown was too close to her and yelling. She tried to push Brown away from her, she said. Brown pushed back, she said. Mr. Krummel described this as “a pushing match.”

Mrs. Krummel said that Brown pushed her and she flew 10 feet before hitting the pavement. Her glasses went flying, she said.

She broke her fall with her elbow.

Mr. Krummel said he was getting out of the car and he saw his wife on the ground. Mrs. Krummel has had two hip replacements, he said. She has also suffered hip dislocations, which, he said, causes paralyzing pain.

He said he saw her on the ground and worried that her hip was dislocated again. He exchanged words with Brown and slapped her, he said. Brown, who he said had keys in her hand, balled her fist around the keys and punched him, he said.

His glasses helped shield him from the blow, he said. One lens came out.

The police arrived. Both parties said they would not press charges, he said. Kulhawik confirmed that.

Mr. Krummel said he went to see an ophthalmologist Tuesday.

“He has a serious eye injury but he’s going to be alright,” Mrs. Krummel said.

She is not going to press charges because of the time involved, and she feels she wants to do positive things with the time she has left, she said.

That is why she wants to be on the BOE.

“I want to give energy to things that I think are significant,” she said. “I am tired of hearing that things are dismal (in the school system).”

She said she has spent her life in education. She is Professor Emerita, Queens College, City University of New York, and teaches in prisons.

“It’s not that I’m afraid of pressing charges against her,” she said. “What would be the point? It’s not going to make a difference in Norwalk life. I’m not a coward. I go to prison every week.”

Mr. Krummel said Brown has no business single-handedly deciding who will be a candidate and who won’t.

“Amanda has refused to recognize Regina as a candidate for the Board of Ed,” he said. “That’s ridiculous, it’s not up to her to screen candidates.”

It’s Brown’s job to forward potential candidates to a committee for vetting, he said. He likened leaving his wife off the list to leaving District D Chairman Vinny Mangiacopra off the list of candidates for mayor.

“We’d all get pretty upset at that, wouldn’t we?” Krummel asked.

NDTC member Diane Lauricella said she has problems with Brown’s behavior.

“I as a member of the DTC I am really concerned that the chairman continues to behave in manners that are embarrassing to the party,” she said. “I have seen her get very belligerent and I don’t agree with her.”

Republicans have problems, too, she said, but you won’t read about them.

“It’s not as though the Republicans love each other,” she said. “They have done some behind-the-scenes back stabbing, it’s just that they keep it quiet. … I know that most of us in the party know how to handle differences of opinions. I’m very sad when the head of the party and other leaders don’t know how to behave in a civil manner, because I want to see my party become a big tent, not a big circus tent.”

(Editor’s note — Amanda Brown released a statement on this incident after the story was published.)

Norwalk Police report re NDTC July 3 2013

Comments

93 responses to “Norwalk Dems battle in City Hall parking lot”

  1. Just Asking

    Isnt assualt on an elderly person over 65 a felony in CT? Certainly looks like plenty of PC for a couple of charges.
    And we wonder why the pool of candidates is always below par of what is truly available and would like to serve this communtity. “Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right.”
    Here we are stuck in the middle under the big tent.

  2. D(ysfunctional)TC

    Is it actually up to the Krummels to press charges?
    How was Brown not arrested for this? There should be zero tolerance for beating up elderly people. The fact that other DTC leaders aren’t screaming for her arrest and instead pointing to Republicans says it all about the current state of our local Democrat leadership. Confusing beating up senior citizens with healthy debate clearly indicates you have no business making any decisions for Norwalk. Period.

  3. adrienne

    This is a disgrace.

  4. Jjones

    Dems infighting has now turned physical .

  5. Joanne Romano

    This is horrific! No matter the circumstance no one should ever put their hands on another person and especially not an elderly person! I for one am appalled and would be no matter what party/who the person was! People in power have no more rights than anyone else and should be held to higher standards of behavior! This is the reason so many back away from involvement in politics! Bullying and retribution! Not sure why the story took a turn to the republicans other than it was to take the heat off the actual altercation! I don’t really care what party this women belongs to, what she did is disgusting at least and criminal at best! I would say this no matter what party a person belongs to …the DTC needs to ask, no demand Ms. Brown’s immediate resignation. They should not allow this kind of behavior from their leaders! I really don’t care what anyone has to say about my response either because this type of behavior is inexcusable and should not be condoned by anyone! Shame on you Ms. Brown! and shame on anyone who does not see the wrongdoing here! My thoughts to the Krummels whom I have known for many years and who are very respectable people. No one should have to be subject to such humiliating/hurtful behavior against their person!

  6. ScopeonNorwalk

    Please, the Krummels jumped Ms. Brown over a BOE seat and she defended herself. Members of Krummel’s District E committee have even said that Bill Krummel uses scare tactics to control the district…I wouldn’t vote for Ms. Brown for anything and I also wouldn’t vote for Regina Krummel for anything. What’s she going to do if she doesn’t get nominated, or elected, or doesn’t get her way on the BOE floor? Start pushing people around and calling her husband to slap women around? Neither Ms. Brown, Mr. Krummel, or Ms. Krummel are worthy of holding any elected positions at this point.

  7. Suzanne

    In what universe is it o.k., as adults who should know better, to be physically violent at any level in order to solve what appeared to be something as benign as a committee problem which could have been discussed? This is TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE. Amanda Brown should be relieved of her responsibilities NOW. She needs counseling to learn how to solve problems without violence, verbal or physical, and certainly should not be in any position of responsibility with the DTC if they want any credibility at all. Age 38 versus two people in their 80’s? It IS elder abuse and it IS a crime. I am sure there were words said on both sides but her reaction is her responsibility. If she found the Krummels so intolerable, she should have WALKED AWAY. Amanda Brown, resign now. See someone responsible who can help you control your temper. Let someone who can be responsible for their emotions and actions take over the DTC.

  8. ScopeonNorwalk

    A man should never put his hands on a woman. This is 2013, you better expect to get hit back if you off and slap a woman. Krummel is a big Rilling supporter so much that Rilling will be taking Krummel’s place at the convention. Does Rilling condone the back slapping in the face of the chairwoman?

  9. LWitherspoon

    Wow.

  10. EveT

    Joanne’s observation bears repeating: “This is the reason so many back away from involvement in politics! Bullying and retribution!”

  11. Suzanne

    Sorry, ScopeonNorwalk. This is no longer a government committee problem. Physical violence resulting in the picture above is the issue here, forget politics. This cannot be overlooked. If it would make you happy, maybe all three should step back from their responsibilities to this town. I, for one, do not want to see anyone in a leadership position such as Ms. Brown, be allowed to hold such a position if this is the way she believes it is appropriate to solve problems. We teach our kids to walk away, we say “use your words.” Ms. Brown apparently doesn’t understand these concepts. She made a big mistake when she took the swing that resulted in the physical injury shown above – just because the Krummels are not easy to get along with? Not acceptable. Ms. Brown needs to step down NOW and learn the kids’ basics to dealing with conflict resolution.

  12. Joanne Romano

    Scopeonnorwalk…you are kidding right????The man sees his wife on the ground, a frail 82 yr old women, because Ms. Brown could not tolerate being confronted about her lack of response to an e-mail requesting consideration to a position? Do you condone pushing an 82 yr old women to the ground??? I’d hate to be your mother if that is the case! What does this have to do with Rilling or any other candidate for that matter? This is about Assault on a person over 60 which is a felony! I guess I better not have an argument with someone for fear of being assaulted…after all, I’m over 60 too! Your responses are just out of control…Get the politics out of your head and look at the situation for what it is…To condone this behavior makes you no better than the person who chose to push an 82 year old women to the ground. I believe that had the original altercation not taken place, the end result would have been different…Walk away from someone you disagree with…never put your hands on them especially if they are not strong enough to defend themselves and tit results in injury such as this!

  13. NorwalkNeedsAChange

    It sounds like Mrs. Krummel invaded Amanda’s space and was pushed away. Being elderly, Mrs. Krummel fell and this was followed by Mr. Krummel slapping Amanda. It sounds like Amanda was within her rights! If any charges were to be placed, they should be placed on the Krummels.

  14. Ergo

    Oh good grief. As if our BOE wasn’t a hot mess to begin with.

    Everyone was in the wrong and should be ashamed of themselves. These are the people we elected to represent our voice in the town, get rid of all of them. I’m embarrassed for them.

  15. Ergo

    Also, it would be nice if the photo on the main page was edited to be less graphic with a warning that the photo in the article is graphic.

    A little gross to look out while eating my Wheaties.

  16. Sally_V

    Maybe the most ridiculous bit of spin is Diane Lauricella. Maybe it was a quick comment, but to say Republicans are beating each other up, you just don’t hear about it? Are you kidding me? What 84 year old Republicans have been beaten up?

    This isn’t about party, it is about violent people.
    (Editor’s note: This comment has been edited to conform with our comment policy)

  17. Daisy

    She’s got to go. I don’t live in Norwalk anymore, and I’m a registered GOP-er who thinks that Moccia hasn’t done a bad job as Mayor. But it’s supposed to be a fair and reasonable fight, and along with having 4 candidates vying for the nomination for mayor (divisions always work in favor of the team that has one pick), THIS is guaranteed to harm the Dems. A lot, not a little. They’ve just all but re-elected Moccia without even having a convention yet.

  18. ScopeonNorwalk

    They’re all wrong is all I’m saying not just Ms. Brown…let’s imagine the players were changed. And oh let’s say Bobby Burgess slaps say Nora King and Nora King punched him in return(just as examples now). Would anyone be saying oh, poor 80 something year old Bobby Burgess? No way, and the story and headline would have read differently as well.

    (Editor’s response: You are absolutely wrong and you are making the same kind of generalization about journalists as racists make about people who don’t look like them. Under your scenario, we write the same story, different names. Just like we don’t, despite predictions to the contrary when certain Republicans were taking some heat, give different treatment to Dems and Repubs. It’s all about the story.)

  19. Joanne Romano

    Yes, it would be the same thing lets not make this into a racial thing such as you are trying to do, 80 years old is 80 years old no matter what color, race or ethnicity you are. The one thing you are leaving out of the equation is that Mr. Krummel was defending his wife who was laying on the ground obviously in pain…No one should hit anyone!!!! Walk Away my friend…walk away, lead by example!

  20. William203

    Folks you are closed-minded and don’t want to face the facts.

    You believe The Krummels should get a pass because their in their 80’s… com’on Regina pushes Amanda and she pushed her back but Regina falls, then Bill slap’s Amanda, so she punch him back but Amanda is the one who is wrong in this scenerio… it’s plain and simple, “do unto other, as you want others to do unto you” THE KRUMMEL’S WERE DEAD WRONG and they got what they deserved!!!

  21. Joanne Romano

    NorwalkNeedsAChange-your comment is beyond the scope of believable. She was invading Amanda’s space? Did you even read the article or are you just not interested in the real world?

    Just incase you missed it: “Mrs. Krummel said she started to get out of the car and Brown ran up, waving a printout of an email Mrs. Krummel had sent in April.

    “She was waving it in my face as I got out of the car and screaming at me,” Mrs. Krummel said”.

  22. William203

    Joanne, you say walk away… if it was just that simple & easy… put yourself in Amanda’s shoes because I highly doubt if you were pushed then slapped you would just walk away!

  23. William203

    I read the article and it’s state’s nothing about Amanda ran up to their car, get your facts right!

    Editor’s note: For the record, the story states:

    Mrs. Krummel said she started to get out of the car and Brown ran up, waving a printout of an email Mrs. Krummel had sent in April.
    “She was waving it in my face as I got out of the car and screaming at me,” Mrs. Krummel said.
    … Mrs. Krummel said Brown was too close to her and yelling. She tried to push Brown away from her, she said. Brown pushed back, she said. Mr. Krummel described this as “a pushing match.”

    Mrs. Krummel said that Brown pushed her and she flew 10 feet before hitting the pavement. Her glasses went flying, she said.

  24. Anna

    I have to say that if they are doing this in the parking lot, how can we depend on them to handle themselves in a sane manner when it comes to decisions for our children. Does anyone realize that individual agendas effect our most precious commodity… our kids.

  25. Joanne Romano

    Read it again! and read my quote…did you miss something?

  26. William203

    I apologize Joanne, Regina did state that “when she was getting out of the car, Amanda ran up waving her hand” but as you may know there the Krummel’s side, Amanda side and then the truth. I can’t believe … Gordon Tully called the Cop’s, but cannot remember what really took place!!!

    (Editor’s note: This comment has been edited to conform with our comment policy)

  27. Dana

    That is some shiner Mr. Krummel is sporting. I think Amanda must have clocked him very hard. What a shame we have such a fool as a Democratic Chairwoman such as her. Such a disgrace!

  28. William203

    editor, thanks for clarification.

  29. William203

    Again, Amanda shouldn’t be single out here, Regina and Bill has a responsibility as well, furthermore, had the Krummel’s kept their hands to themselves, none of this would have taking place.

  30. Lisa Thomson

    As an unaffiliated voter considering change this fall, this wasn’t exactly what I was expecting from the DTC and District E leadership. No doubt, the RTC gang will hardly be able to contain their joy. Very disappointed.

  31. William203

    Also to add the Krummel’s should be a shamed and should be the ones who step down and resign from the DTC and District committees.

  32. Joanne Romano

    Thank you for re-reading it. Witnesses are as good as they remember…there’s a shampoo commercial like that…if you tell someone and they tell someone…so forth and so on…but no matter…this is a horrible situation that could have been avoided had someone just walked away! Or refrained from confrontation in the first place!

  33. William203

    The RTC has their own issues as well but unfortunately the Mayor and Scialabba puts a gag order on the local media and threaten lawsuit if there is anything published or said about them.

  34. William203

    Don’t believe me… ask Nancy Chapman!!!

  35. William203

    The Krummel’s are playing this up, neither, party wanted to press charges but The Krummel’s go’s and give an interview 2 days later and photo op of Bill’s eye… give me a break… I see right through them!!!

    Shame, Shame, Shame!

  36. NorwalkNeedsAChange

    Amanda should take no blame. Mrs. Krummel pushed Amanda first and was to old to take the push back. Then to be smacked by a grown man. Amanda should be applauded for dealing with people like this.

  37. Bystander

    So the article doesn’t say, did Krummel get the nomination in the end?

  38. Joanne Romano

    William…I am not condoning anyone’s behavior but again, Ms. Brown was in fact in Mrs. Krummel’s face and she did in fact push Amanda to give her space but again…even I at 60 would never think of pushing someone of that age and fragility back just because they pushed me and I’m also considered a protected class in that I am over 60. I am a Republican Lisa and I do not find any of this amusing nor do I think it is something to Whoop it up about, what I do think is it is a very sad situation and hopefully everyone will learn from it. No amount of power gives you the right to attack or otherwise harm another person. Ms. Brown should have responded to Mrs. Krummel’s e-mail with a return e-mail…not confront her in a public venue flailing her arms and causing alarm. At William, do you think maybe Nancy was in the building at the time or possibly in the parking lot and that she in fact did what any normal reporter would…ask questions!!!!!

  39. The Dude

    I think William203 has been hitting the pipe a little to long, relax dude smoke a bowl all is good, just a little felony by your DTC chair-ring master

  40. 0ldtimer

    Most of us gave up physical altercations like this in grade school or shortly after. This should never have happened and the Krummels seem to be pursuing some agenda by taking their side of the story to the press. All three of them should be ashamed. I can understand Amanda taking a swing at Bill after getting slapped, but the whole conversation should have been at a committee meeting, not in the parking lot.

  41. William203

    Com’on Joanne,

    your smarter than that… Nancy wasn’t there and I know exactly who leak the story to her.

  42. Shauna

    This is a complete embarassment. Amanda brown should step down immediately – and if the DTC and common council
    Democrats do not support it shame on them.

  43. William203

    Oldtimer, I agree with your assessment.

  44. Micky

    Sounds like Brown should be charged for two counts of assaulting an elderly person. What is she, … hitting and throwing to the ground an elderly woman who’s had hip operations? Geez.

    (This comment has been edited to conform with our comment policy)

  45. I am very distressed to have heard about the physical altercation involving the DTC Chair and a DTC Member. I have spent my entire career in pursuit of integrity, honesty and civility.
    Ms. Brown appears to have broken the law and her actions simply cannot be condoned. As a lawyer and an officer of the Court, I cannot in good conscious stay silent. Whatever caused this parking lot brawl cannot justify a physical assault on one of our seniors. I call on Ms. Brown to resign as DTC Chair effective immediately.

  46. Suzanne

    That any of this behavior is acceptable to anyone is a sad commentary on Norwalk citizenry. A physical confrontation resulting in an elderly woman on the ground and another elderly person badly injured is pathetic and inexcusable. Period. One of those adults needed to take the high road, set the example of appropriate conflict resolution and none of them did. That anyone finds this acceptable? A Norwalk citizen could be arrested for such behavior. That these Norwalk citizens happen to hold positions of leadership in the community? VERY sad. They should all take a breath and a break. Leave the responsibilities they have been involved with to others who know how to TALK with each other rather than scream and fight physically. This is just categorically unacceptable.

  47. Joanne Romano

    I agree with Old timer, This should have been taken up at a committee meeting. @ William, every one has an agenda and whether or not that is the story here it should never have happened. Bottom line it is a very sad situation and I don’t feel as if I should have to defend myself for having an opinion. If it was leaked to the press or not, the police were called and it would be public record anyway! With the elections coming up this puts a very bad taste in the mouths of voters and does not help anyone’s agenda!

  48. EveT

    How can anyone say: “I can understand Amanda taking a swing at Bill after getting slapped” Come on, it was reprehensible all the way around.

  49. NorwalkNeedsAChange

    This goes to every woman that has posted a comment. If you were to get smacked, by a man who I know has hands the size of a “pack of franks” , you would either strike him back or spend the rest of your life wishing you did. Political involvement aside, Amanda was not in the wrong!

  50. KSully

    Finally. One of the Democrats running for Mayor of Norwalk, Matt Miklave, has stepped up and asked Ms. Brown to resign. Integrity and civility is alive and well in the Norwalk Democratic Party, and his name is Matt Miklave.

  51. Senior citizen beaten and cops do nothing?????The cops have the duty to arrest period.

  52. Dana

    Thank you Matt Miklave for stepping up & asking Ms. Brown to resign.

  53. Joanne Romano

    NorwalkNeedsAChange- you are dead wrong in your assessment, If I was involved in something of that nature I would call the police immediately..and walk away til someone came to intervene.. No matter what..two wrongs don’t make a right…the fact is that Ms. brown accosted mrs. Krummel in an unsettling verbalmanner, mrs. Krummel pushed Ms. Brown away from her and in return Ms. Brown pushed Mrs. Krummel to the ground was wrong number one and two, the fact that Mr. Krummel smacked Ms. Brown is wrong number 3 and that Ms. Brown then curled her keys in her hand and fully punched Mr. Krummel in the eye???? nope not getting it! If Ms. Brown had walked away and called the police she would have looked a whole lot better in everyone’s eyes. No matter how much spin anyone tries to put on this situation it all comes back to WRONG in so many ways!

  54. Joe Espo

    No one is stating the obvious: 38 year old black woman clocks an elderly white guy and shoves his wife to the ground. Imagine if Ms. Brown were white and the Krummels were black. Al Sharpton would be busing in protesters and the Department of Justice would be filing a civil rights complaint.

  55. Joe B

    A bunch of f’n Animals!!!! All of them!!!!!! What an embarrassment. You know what? Throw them all off of any boards councils and seats. We deserve better than this.

  56. John

    This doesn’t surprise me in the least. I have watched the Democratic party in Connecticut become increasingly coarser, cheapening themselves, and engaging in bully politics. Lawlor is a perfect example of the thug politician – using his office and vicious verbal attacks to intimidate and manipulate others.

    Not surprised that it has become physical. I am quite sure that this will become more commonplace as this party finds that they will have no choice to turn on each other to keep from going under.

  57. you’re all Evil

    so its safe to say its ok for an old guy … to slap a Black woman in the face and we all just call it a day huh? Put yourselves in Mrs Browns shoes for that moment. bet you cant cos you’re not Black and guess what you could care less what happens to this woman! she’s being ridiculed because of her color and we all know that. what if she was the one to throw the first blow????? she would be in jail at this very moment, no questions. the Krummels didnt want to press charges solely because they were the ones that acctacked Brown. Its sad this had to happen but most of you on here are just as racist as the Krummells!

    (This comment has been edited to conform to our comment policy)

  58. LWitherspoon

    Mr. Miklave,

    I respect your opinion that Ms. Brown should step down. That said, your statement that you have “spent your entire career in pursuit of integrity, honesty, and civility” is quite self-aggrandizing. Please don’t try to make this about you.

    Perhaps next time it would serve you better to simply give your opinion, without all the puffery. Such verbosity and self-promotion makes people wonder if you are making this statement out of genuine conviction, or because it’s politically advantageous.

    Also, I believe the word you are looking for is “conscience”.

  59. KSully

    “LWitherspoon” — Does Dick Moccia know that your myopia includes discouraging Norwalk’s citizens from standing against violence? Your disservice and bias knows no bounds. We all know you’re a Moccia shill, but can’t you just say “I respect Mr. Miklave’s courage for being the only Democratic mayoral candidate to ask for Ms. Brown’s resignation”, and leave it at that? Shame on YOU for turning and act of integrity into Moccia spin! And shame on Dick Moccia for letting you speak for him. Clearly City Hall needs Matt Miklave’s integrity.

  60. Joe Espo

    That extra large order of popcorn really came in handy for the Republicans. Now THIS is entertainment: the full- force implosion of the Norwalk Democrat party.

  61. Joseph Stans

    MS. Brown may have anger management issues.

  62. Don’t Panic

    Contrary to popular perception, the DTC consists of many well-meaning, ethical, thoughtful and effective members–members like Mr. Miklave, who has called this one as he sees it.

  63. LongJohn47

    Why are the Krummels “Mr.” and “Mrs.” throughout the story but Ms. Brown is referred to as “Brown”? Why the double standard?

    Editor’s reply: Mr. and Mrs. identify WHICH Krummel is being talked about. It is not our style to use courtesy titles. In this case it was for clarification, less cumbersome than using first names every time.

  64. Gordon Tully

    I would like to clarify my role relative to a comment by William203. Many experiments have shown that eye-witnesses “see” many things that don’t occur. Very few people are trained to notice details when something disturbing and fast-moving occurs, and I am not one of them. I refuse to speculate about what I saw. I had a vague memory that someone was on the ground, but that is not something I would swear to. I can confidently state only that there was a shouting match and that Ms. Brown struck Mr. Krummel. I didn’t even remember correctly where Mr. Krummel was hit – I thought it was on the side and not in the eye. I called the police because I was uncertain what might happen next.

  65. Jane

    Brown defended herself. Most of you going against her probably dont like her honestly. If your family member was treated by the Krummels in the manner that Brown was, your comments would have been significantly different. You all have hidden agendas, thats what politics is anyways. For a man no matter what age to lay his hand on a woman (no matter the race) ITS UNACCEPTABLE! The heck is wrong with you if you think what the Krummels did was okay. Ms. Brown is a single mother, she has her own story. She had to go home and sit with this on her chest, how do you think she explained this to her kids?

  66. NorwalkLifer

    Bill krummell slapped amanda in the face before amanda did anything violent. Seems like you all don’t find that important though?

    Also, matt miklave is an “office of the court” that knows more than all the police officers on the scene. Now that’s classic. Talk abt a political opportunist. Matt miklave should be ashamed of himself.

    I’m glad we have harry and vinny to demonstrate some repsonsibility in this kangaroo court.

  67. Suzanne

    This is not a gender issue and this is not a race issue. It is about adult humans acting highly inappropriately toward one another resulting in injury to at least two people. Each one should take responsibility for their parts in this embarrassment to the City and to the respective Councils and Committees in which they serve. They ALL owe the CITY an apology for their ridiculous playground antics and they all should step back and step down from their City related responsibilities. I am sure Ms. Krummel, with all of her talent in her old age, can find something better to do than serve on the BOE. She has lost her right to that by her participation in this. In other words, they all belong in detention, including Ms. Brown and Mr. Krummel and should stay there for a very long time. Given the energy and time and passion they seem to feel about City work, I am sure they can all be of service elsewhere other than City Hall.

  68. LongJohn47

    @editor — okay, you used titles for clarity, but the overall effect is that one side seems to be shown respect and the other isn’t. This is compounded, by the way, in that your story is completely one-sided. The narrative is only told from the Krummels’ point of view with no rebutal from Brown. Did you contact her and offer to include her side in the story? Did you ask for other DTC member reactions other than the one that you used?

    Editor’s reply: If you read the story, you saw that she declined to comment. Of course we contacted her. As for DTC quotes, this story broke late and most people were not available. Ms. Brown chose to wait until Wednesday afternoon to respond. And, in case you are wondering — another commenter brought it up — we received an anonymous tip and contacted the Krummels, Ms. Brown and Mr. Tully. They did not come looking for us. We sought out the statements from the mayoral candidates. We sought out the police chief. Twice. We are working on other angles. We broke the story well before the other outlets, and we did not depend on information from other outlets to pad our story (nor did The Hour, which did a nice job of catching up).

  69. TG

    Amanda is a very dear friend of mine. And so I will begin with two basic statements about her. One, she is not a liar. She is humble and she is truthful and transparent about her life, including her faults. Two, she is most certainly not one to use physical violence or even verbal assaults to make her point- she has worked too hard to get where she is to reduce her impact with foolishness. For those reasons, I find her email to be a credible one- backed by the fact that Mr. Krummel neither wanted to press charges nor had any photographs taken at the scene, yet released a photo after the fact to the media. Clearly not the actions of a person who wants the whole story to come out.
    Now, that said, do I wish that my friend could have turned the other cheek at some point in this? Sure, but honestly, I don’t know if there was a point at which that could have been done, such as these situations occur. But then there is also that part if me that feels her pain at the demeaning nature of Mr. Krummel’s words and actions. He demonstrated an arrogant classism, sexism, and racism in everything he did, me he is supposed to get a pass because he is old?? Where is the outrage that this MAN hit a WOMAN? Is that acceptable nowadays? Is verbal abuse acceptable? I wasn’t there, I don’t know all the details, I sure wish the whole incident was handled better, but I refuse to let Amanda be railroaded as the perpetrator here.

  70. LWitherspoon

    @KSully
    .
    Attacking me won’t change the fact that in his comment, Mr. Miklave bloviated that “I have spent my entire career in pursuit of integrity, honesty and civility.” What exactly does this self-promotional statement have to do with the unfortunate incident between Ms. Brown and the Krummels?
    .
    “As a lawyer and an officer of the Court, I cannot in good conscious [sic] stay silent,” Mr. Miklave bloviates. What does that even mean? More self-aggrandizement, laden with error. For those who don’t know, EVERY lawyer is an officer of the court! Miklave’s comment is clearly more about promoting Miklave than expressing his opinion. I can respect and even agree with anyone who feels Ms. Brown should step down, but it’s beyond ugly for Mr. Miklave to use this incident as an opportunity to remind us of how great he is.

  71. LWitherspoon

    As far as Ms. Brown resigning, at first I felt that the best way to deal with this ugly incident would be for BOTH Ms. Brown and Mr. Krummel to step down from their DTC roles. People who allow disagreements to get physical are not fit for leadership roles in politics, I reasoned.
    .
    But then I heard Ms. Brown’s side, where she informed us that Mr. Krummel was hurling racial epithets throughout the conversation. Plus, Mr. Krummel admitted hitting her first. So what was Ms. Brown supposed to do – stand there calmly while Mr. Krummel hurled vile racial slurs at her, and then hit her? Her reaction was ugly but not entirely unjustified, especially if she felt threatened. Was anybody who is commenting there? If not, how can you be certain you know what happened?
    .
    Ultimately there is plenty of wrong on each side of this, including much of the commentary directed at Ms. Brown. Why are Mssrs. Miklave and Garfunkel calling for the resignation of Ms. Brown but not of Mr. Krummel, who admitted slapping a woman and is accused of yelling racial epithets at her? How is it that Ms. Brown is now unfit to lead the DTC yet Mr. Krummel is fit to continue leading District E?
    .
    Barring new information that could cause us to view these events differently, Ms. Brown and Mr. Krummel should both resign. But it’s highly likely that we still don’t know the whole story. So it’s ok if some of the mayoral candidates want to learn more before publicly proclaiming where they stand on this issue.

  72. TG

    Additionally, yes the article does seem one sided. The only two sources outside of the Krummels is a DYC member who describes Amanda as “belligerent” (aren’t many involved in politics), and that sheds a negative light on her, despite it not having anything to do with being violent. The other is a witness who really can’t recall much, and clearly missed that Krummel hit first. Where are the quotes from Amanda supporters? Clearly she has quite a few. She is the elected chair! And yes, I am sure the anonymous tip was connected to Krummels. Why refuse police involvement where the truth will surely make them look guilty, and then talk to the media and play up the sympathy. An example: one of the articles I read clearly says that the police stated that all parties’ stories matched, correct? So I read the police report, and it states that Amanda says Mrs. Krummel approached her. So the Krummels must have agreed with this to the police. Yet, in the article, Mrs. Krummel accuses Amanda of approaching her, waving an email, and getting in her face? I don’t buy it. And if you look at The Hour’s recent pics of the Krummels, Mr. Krummel looks like a healthy and robust older man- certainly one who should not be slapping a woman! I don’t care how old you are! Since when do we give able bodied men a pass to assault women just because they are old? And pairing his behavior with racial slurs- why is no one suggesting his attack on Amanda is a hate crime?

  73. Asa H.M.

    @LWitherspoon – Once again, you use your comments to bash candidates rather than look at the reported facts. All 3 parties to the altercation originally agreed on the version of events. Then Ms. Brown decided that she needed to write her own rebuttal and add “race” into the equation. A typical theme in most Norwalk politics when no one has any other explanation. IT IS NOT ALWAYS A RACE ISSUE! As usual, you also attack Mr. Miklave for his reply’s to an issue. He and Mr. Garfunkel both called for Ms. Brown’s resignation, as the head of the local DTC. They cannot call for Mr. Krummels’ resignation – that rests with his Distric E constituants. Lastly, once again, you wrap Mr. Miklave’s replys with propaganda. He has the most sincere intentions, the best interests of Norwalk and it’s citizens. Yet, he did not use this platform to move those agendas forward, he simply used his own professional knowledge “as an officer of the court” to state what the obvious course of action should be. Others have pointed out that assault of seniors over the age of 60 is a crime in Connecticut. I wonder how our former police chief can confuse this crime with the “unfortunate incident” that he proclaims it to be. If the injured parties do not choose to press charges, that is their perogative. It is still a crime, and he should know that. I congratulate Mr. Miklave and Mr. Garfunkel for recognizing and confronting head on the biased leadership in their own party. MS. Brown should step down, and District E should discuss their solutions with their representative as well. I read Mr. Miklave’s comments as fact, not as self- promotion. And I am glad to see that even you can quote “how great he is”!

  74. Ante Litteram BOE

    One must question the wealth of ego resplendent on this blog. Equating physical assault against two elderly persons with political squabbling between Common Council members is the height of self-importance.
    Does anyone doubt the real issue is the siege-mentality of Amanda Brown and her Penna-Barbis-Mangiacopra clique? Driving Kimmel and Geake to the Grand Old Plutocrats, losing half of the Democrats on the school board to an extreme right-wing Republican faction, and watching Democrat office holders actively support Bob Duff’s opponent in the last election– one must question around what, if anything, Ms. Brown and company are circling their wagons.

  75. LWitherspoon

    @Asa H.M.
    Here are the reported facts: All the parties, including the Krummels, agreed that the incident first became physical when Mrs. Krummel pushed Ms. Brown. Ms. Brown pushed back, and Mrs. Krummel fell down. Then Mr. Krummel slapped Ms. Brown, and she punched him. If Mr. Krummel was using racial epithets it’s not necessarily going to be in the first story in Nancy on Norwalk, since the Krummels were largely the source for that story. I haven’t seen the police report, have you? On what basis have you concluded that Mr. Krummel did not use racial epithets, and that the racial component of this story was invented later by Ms. Brown? May I respectfully suggest that you be careful about jumping to this conclusion.
    .
    Matt Miklave’s decision to use this ugly incident to pompously proclaim that “I have spent my entire career in pursuit of integrity, honesty and civility” was in extremely poor taste. This incident has nothing to do with how Mr. Miklave has conducted his career. It was not necessary to say “look at me, I’m a paragon of virtue who is nothing like these reprobates.” I applaud Miklave’s condemnation of Ms. Brown’s behavior but his opportunistic self-promotion is tone deaf and beyond ugly.
    .
    Similarly, Mr. Miklave’s one-sided statement gives the Krummels a pass on escalating this incident from a loud argument to a physical one. In Nancy’s first article, Mrs. Krummel admitted pushing Ms. Brown and Mr. Krummel admitted slapping Ms. Brown. Why no statement by Mr. Miklave on the Krummels awful behavior? Do you really expect anyone to believe that Miklave can’t call for Mr. Krummel’s resignation because Mr. Miklave doesn’t live in District E? Mr. Miklave is willing to tell the entire DTC that Ms. Brown should step down, but he’s not willing to say that District E’s leader should also step down?

    (Editor’s note: The police report is attached at the end of the first story. )

  76. A. Citizen

    Unless an arrest is made the Chief of Police should be removed from office.

  77. Joanne Romano

    This is now yesterday’s news and by now I would hope all parties have learned from their mistakes…As I said earlier two (30 wrongs don’t make a right! It’s time for the three to figure out where they go from here and do the right thing. I don’t condone physical violence of any kind and it is not the headlines we would want kids to read. We are trying to teach the younger generation tolerance and yet every day in every newspaper across the nation the headlines burst with violence. How can we expect them to learn and grow if we don’t set the right examples. It has to be very hurtful and disturbing for Ms. Brown’s children and family to see this sort of thing on the front of newspapers and for that I feel sorry because I do believe all three, albeit different views are trying to do their best to help Norwalk grow but this does nothing to help them achieve these goals. We should all have learned from this that violence is not the answer and adults must face the consequences of their actions in order to truly teach our children right from wrong. And yes I did call for Ms. Brown to step down because I believe its the right thing to do …I think all three need a breather from the spotlight and should all retreat to behind the scenes. This behavior should not be tolerated from any one and especially not from our civic leaders no matter what party they belong to! So for now, lets all go to our designated corners and enjoy the 4th of July because it’s all about independence and our freedoms to express our opinions… Happy 4th all!

  78. Jane

    OMG you people keep playing the age game. This 84 year old had no problem putting his hands on her so why should she not defend herself?.

  79. Joanne Romano

    A. Citizen* As has been reported in each and every article on this topic, none of the three want to press charges..Why would the Chief be removed from office…thats really insane! Unless one party or other presses charges what does it have to do with the chief? The most that could have been charged would have been disorderly conduct which is a misdemeanor payable by a fine. Why is it every time something happens its the cops fault? These are 3 adults who know right from wrong (or should) and chose not to move forward with charges against each other. Bottom line, there were no witnesses except Mr. Tully who doesn’t know exactly who did what, when or where. No offense but certainly not a witness any judge would welcome. He called the police as his civic duty and for that he should be commended but this is between the three amigos to hash out and decide where they go from here!

  80. Sherelle Harris

    This is one of those situations that has really affected me deeply. Most of us were not there and at the end of the day everyone has an opinion. It concerns me that the situation escalated to the point it did, but let us all be honest; we are all human and we all have breaking points whether it makes the news or not. If neither party wants to file charges, then continuing to point fingers only exacerbates the situation and does nothing for our town or for them. This is tragic and my only concern is if, in the aftermath, Amanda Brown, Regina and Bill Krummel are OK physically and emotionally? Where are the peacemakers?

  81. Lifelong Teacher

    This sounds like the kind of playground incident I deal with daily. Physical contact and assault leads to suspension. Let’s take the age issue out of it (and I am well over 60 myself).

    Mrs. Krummel shoved Ms. Brown, and she is the one who escalated this incident. Period. I am a very peaceful older person, but I don’t know if I wouldn’t have done the same thing and shoved back. It is unfortunate that she fell down.

    Now he steps in and assaults a woman. He also escalated the incident. There is definitely a racial edge to this. Two white people, age aside, initiated violence against a black woman. Were it the other way around, what would the response be?

    I expect better behavior from children.

  82. Don’t Panic

    It’s time people stopped trying to assess blame within this incident itself. Who started it? Who escalated it? Hitting, shoving, even yelling at a elderly person is not acceptable behavior. Neither is hitting, shoving or yelling at a woman (or a man, or a child, for that matter). Racial epithets are NEVER acceptable.

    These people are among the leadership of the local Democratic organization and clearly this has been festering for some time, which indicates that there does not seem to be a mechanism for equitably and agreeably resolving disputes.

    THAT is the real reason both leaders (BOTH of whom are former councilpersons) Ms Brown and Mr. Krummel should consider stepping down and allowing new leadership to try a different approach. They each should issue a public apology to the DTC members and to Norwalk Democrats, for not going through the proper channels to settle this dispute, and for disrupting its operations at this critical time.

  83. Don’t Panic

    It should be noted that anytime something controversial happens here in Norwalk during a Mayoral election, the first thing that happens is that the candidates get excoriated for not taking a position. They are also among the first people the press seeks out for comment. You can’t have it both ways.

    Mr. Miklave spoke his conscience based upon the facts available at the time, as did Mr. Garfunkel, Mr. Mangiacopra and Mr. Rilling. It is interesting that Mr. Mangiacopra, who has run the most overtly political campaign–discussing his political credentials and little else–has opted to dub this an unfortunate incident without taking a position. It is also interesting that the two members most involved with the law took completely opposite positions. Mr. Rilling does not appear to understand the law the way Mr. Miklave does.

    There hasn’t been an incident that draws a clearer contrast among the candidates in this campaign than this one. You should think long and hard about voting for someone who chooses to use “discretion” or hangs back to avoid offending some portion of the electorate. You should make sure that the next Mayor of Norwalk has a conscience!

  84. M. Murray’s

    “A Citizen” has no concept of the legal system in CT. Without a complainant willing to testify, any prosecutor would immediately dismiss the charge. Any arrest or smons issued would not be worth the effort.

  85. 0ldtimer

    Mr Miklave is a well respected attorney specialist in Labor Law, according to his web site. He is not well versed in criminal law,police procedure, or how the courts handle criminal matters. Under CT law when criminal charges are brought to court it is the State vs the person charged. Police can, and do, make arrests with no victims or witnesses, except police officers, and cases are prosecuted. Assault, however is unusual in that it is almost impossible to prosecute an assault charge without a victim or witness ready and able to testify.
    In this case, technically, the police could have made arrest(s) but decided not to based, in part, on the express requests of the parties, and, on the officer’s knowlege that a very busy prosecutor would dismiss charges rather than go through the exercise of trying to prove a crime without cooperting victims or witnesses. Not impossible, but not worth the time and effort. Harry Rilling knows this and urged no rush to judgement. He, and most modern police officers are far different from the caricature cops we see on television. Difficult judgements are made every day. Being second guessed by folks who don’t know the facts or what they are talking about is not unusual.

  86. Suzanne

    Don’t Panic, I absolutely agree with your last statement. I believe a definitive statement needed to be made that violence to solve a problem is wrong and those that participate in it need to step down. We tell kids, “Use your words” and “Walk away”, we give them “time outs” to cool off. Any one of these adults could have opted to do that and, instead, resorted to physical violence. That two of the four candidates, Garfunkel and Miklave, spoke their consciences in reference to this violence to me, helps me make a decision about what candidate to vote for. The other two, Rilling and Mangiacopra, seemed to be avoiding a clear comment and I do not know for what motives except, maybe, to be politically expedient. I have been on the fence about all of the Democrat candidates and know now that the two that had the guts to speak up and say loud and clear, “This is wrong” is far better than sending a violent act by appointed/elected officials to a “committee” or “investigation.”

  87. TG

    Lets suppose Clint Eastwood got mad and decided he needed to slap a woman. I wonder how everyone’s perception would be different. He’s 83. Would we feel sorry for the poor senior citizen unjustly assaulted by the young woman he slapped? I guess we’ll never know- because number one, its really hard for me to imagine Clint Eastwood slapping a woman, and equally hard to imagine him showing off the shiner she responded with.

  88. sparky

    Brown pushed her soo hard that she “flew” 10 feet and hit the pavement with her elbows yet, despite her age and bone issues she didn’t require medical attention and still tried to make her case for being on the school board. That’s not an elderly woman, that’s a freaking vampire.

    Also, the “Officer of the Court” made me gag. What a tool

  89. LWitherspoon

    @sparky
    Ten feet does seem like a long way. Perhaps she stumbled ten feet trying to keep her footing before falling.
    .
    I’m glad we are in agreement on Mr. Miklave’s pompous puffery.

  90. Peace and Love

    Mrs Krummel pushed Ms Brown. Ms Brown responded by pushing back. Mr Krummel yelled at Ms Brown and slapped her. Ms Brown responded in return by slapping him. Even though all of this is juvenile behavior I must say I probably would have responded the same way and defended myself as well. I do not condone lashing out with violence but in a fit of rage we can lose control and not make rational decisions.

  91. Suzanne

    You, “Peace and Love”, are not required to show some civility and restraint in public matters when performing leadership responsibilities. All of these people were – perspective and equanimity are a part of the offices they hold and they showed none of these. They should step down and do something else of service to our community. If bullies in Norwalk schools receive a Zero Tolerance grade and suspension, I would think the Democratic leadership would have the same priority at the very least. These people are narcissistic if they believe they are the only ones that can do whatever jobs they are doing as leaders in the DTC. If it is that behaviorally bankrupt, then it is time to start over.

Leave a Reply


Advertisement


Advertisement


Advertisement


Recent Comments