Milwaukee Common Council member Jocasta Zamarripa has filed a formal complaint against fellow Ald. Mark Chambers Jr. and requested an investigation into a verbal altercation between the two at City Hall last week.
The confrontation between Zamarripa and Chambers happened in the lead-up to a news conference on Feb. 11 about potential Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in the city. It is unclear whether the confrontation was related to the news conference, where Milwaukee officials discussed proposals to limit ICE operations.
Sources told the Journal Sentinel that Chambers could be heard yelling throughout the council members’ offices. These sources said Zamarripa later asked to no longer serve on any committee with the alderman over safety concerns resulting from the confrontation.
Zamarripa initially declined to comment to the Journal Sentinel, but on Feb. 17 issued a statement describing a conversation between her and Chambers that “quickly escalated into something far more serious.”
Zamarripa said she had been “confronted” in her office, “verbally berated, and physically intimidated” in a way that made her feel “trapped and unable to safely exit.”
“During the encounter, I was subjected to profane and degrading remarks, including being taunted to ‘start crying,’” Zamarripa said in the statement. “The comments were gendered and demeaning. This is not the first time I have experienced hostility from this individual.”
In a statement to the Journal Sentinel on Feb. 16, Chambers said both council members raised the temperature during the encounter and said they both “need to be sure we are balancing that passion with a spirit of collegiality.”
“It is a mischaracterization to suggest that because I am a man who raised his voice, anyone was in harm’s way or their safety was in question,” Chambers said.
Zamarripa, in her statement, pushed back against Chambers’ characterization.
“When an elected official uses the authority and physical presence of their office to intimidate or silence a colleague, it is a misuse of public power that undermines the democratic process,” she said. “It also sends a troubling message to the residents I represent that their voices can be bullied or pushed aside inside City Hall.”
Zamarripa has asked that the investigation carried out under the city’s ethics code to look into whether Chambers’ conduct constituted a misuse of office and violated the standards required of city officials.
“Holding public office is built on public trust. That trust depends on every elected official being able to do their job without threats, intimidation, or abuse,” Zamarripa said.
Ald. Mark Chambers responds to Zamarripa’s statement
Later on Feb. 17, Chambers fired back at Zamarippa’s statement while pledging to “willingly and fully participate in any investigation into the incident cited, as I firmly believe I conducted myself appropriately and professionally throughout the interaction.”
Chambers said he did not initiate a meeting with Zamarippa in her office but was brought in by Council President Jose Perez “to discuss an email I had previously sent to those members regarding pending legislation and their disagreement,” Chambers said, adding that he was surprised that other council members were already present in the room.
“At no point did I physically block, threaten, or prevent anyone from leaving, nor did I misuse my authority in any way,” Chambers said. “While the discussion was candid and, at moments, intense, as can happen when elected officials engage passionately on issues affecting their constituents, raised voices or strong disagreement should not be misrepresented as intimidation, abuse, or misconduct. I categorically reject those assertions.
Ald. Peter Burgelis, who was present during the altercation between the council members, said Feb. 17 that the altercation was enough for him to draft a motion of censure – a formal reprimand – against Chambers, but paused in filing it with the Milwaukee City Clerk. Burgelis said he was waiting until a third-party investigation carried out by the city’s Department of Employee Relations is completed.
On behalf of the Department of Employee Relations, Mayor Cavalier Johnson’s spokesman, Jeff Fleming, said the department would not comment on whether an investigation is underway before its conclusion.
As a result of the incident, Perez removed the two council members from committees where they were both members.
Chambers was taken off of the city’s powerful licenses committee, where Zamarripa serves as chairwoman, and removed from his role as vice-chair on the judiciary and legislation committee. Zamarripa was removed as vice-chair of the community and economic development committee, of which Chambers is a member.
(This story was updated to add new information.)
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Zamarripa files complaint against Chambers over City Hall incident
Reporting by Vanessa Swales, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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