Bizarre allegations surfaced about a weekend assault on a Tudor Dixon rally at Armando’s in southwest Detroit.
The Wayne County Republican Party chairman claims she was bitten in the arm by a woman protesting the rally. 7 Action News has now confirmed that the suspected shooter is a teacher from the Dearborn Public School District.
In the video provided by a witness, a man can be heard saying, “act like a normal person,” and a woman later replies, “I am.”
Witnesses claim that the woman, a protester, was there alone, and her intentions were to disturb the peace.
“She was acting so chaotic that I was worried she would chase speakers or something or hurt someone,” said Cheryl Costantino.
Costantino says she tried to stop the protester from taking the stage. At first, she felt her push back, then said, “He just came over and bit me hard,” Costantino said.
“I have never been bitten by an adult in my life, nor by anyone over the age of 5,” he added.
Constantino has provided pictures of what he says were bite marks and bruises from the attack.
“The upper part was a compression injury due to the force with which her jaw bit me,” said Costantino. “So when it started to swell, I couldn’t even raise my arm, like it was even uncomfortable to drive.”
Linda Sawyer says she witnessed everything and then confronted the woman after her management kicked her out.
“I was going out, and she was still by the door, and I went to her, and I said, ‘You bit Cheryl,’ and she said, ‘Yeah, well,'” Sawyer said. “As if she were proud of it.”
The woman, who we are not naming because she has not been charged, teaches special education in Dearborn public schools.
We spoke to her on Facebook, and she denied all allegations and claimed she was the one who was attacked.
“If you have autistic, non-verbal children in your care, if it bites an adult, what would you do to a child?” Costantino said.
Constantino has since filed a police report with the Detroit Police Department. A spokesperson confirmed to 7 Action News that they are actively investigating the incident.
Costantino is also a teacher, which, in her opinion, makes the situation even more surprising.
“I don’t understand who would trust someone like that with their children and why a school would expose itself to responsibility by keeping an employee who would behave this way,” Costantino said.
He says nobody’s political views justify violence. “It’s not worth going to jail or being charged,” he said. “It is one thing to fight for what you believe in, but not physically.”
