ELMWOOD PLACE, Ohio - The mayor of Elmwood Place and his husband are in jail Monday charged with domestic violence and disorderly conduct after a drunken fight in their home, according to court documents.
Mayor William Wilson and William Smith got drunk at the Cincinnati Pride Parade and Festival downtown, argued about when to leave and left each other battered and bruised, according to the arresting officer’s affidavit.
Elmwood Place Mayor William Wilson and his husband William Smith after their fight.
Wilson got angry because Smith and another person with them wanted to leave the event and Wilson wanted to stay, the third person told police.
While driving home, the couple got into an argument over who was drunker and who should be driving, and a fight ensued, the third person told police. Police said Wilson called them to their residence on Maple Street around 8 p.m.
When two Elmwood Place officers got there, Sgt. Robert McConnell observed “damage all over the residence with glass everywhere,” he wrote in his affidavit. Wilson and Smith were outside - Wilson on the front sidewalk and Smith on the porch.
The officer said Wilson had “a clear injury to his face” and his left eye was “swollen shut.” Smith, who is Elmwood Place maintenance supervisor, had a "bloody face, bloody elbow and glass all over his back.”
The glass "appeared to be the result of being smacked in the back with a picture frame," McConnell wrote.
Each man claimed he was assaulted by the other, McConnell said.
While police were there, both men argued and screamed at each other, McConnell said. Wilson also screamed at neighbors and became belligerent with McConnell, fellow officer Terry Hochscheid and St. Bernard police Lt. Bill Ungruhe, whom McConnell had called to assist them.
At one point, Wilson tried to go in the house against McConnell's orders and tried to shut the door on McConnell, the officer said.
"He (Wilson) actively resisted arrest by pushing me while trying to pull away," McConnell said. "Lt. Ungruhe ran up and assisted me with getting Mr. Wilson into handcuffs ... While in the back of the cruiser, Mr. Wilson continually screamed and yelled and acted in a completely belligerent manner causing a significant disturbance in the neighborhood."
When Ungruhe tried to calm Wilson down, Wilson "attempted to walk away ... and had to be forcibly put back in the patrol car as he was actively resisting Lt. Ungruhe," according to the affidavit.
The Elmwood Place Fire Department treated Smith for his injuries, but Wilson was "belligerent and uncooperative with EPFD," McConnell said.
In conclusion, McConnell wrote that "the investigation suggests that Mr. Wilson and Mr. Smith are equally responsible for the fight inside of their residence."
David Cramp, who lives across the street, told WCPO that he had seen the two men argue but never fight.
"Having someone argue outside like that is not out of the ordinary - no, nothing physical, ever," Cramp said.
Cramp called Wilson “a nice guy” but suggested his behavior is erratic. “I've been over at this house a couple different times - friendly, but in the past he's gone off the handle," Cramp said.
Wilson and Smith are due in court Monday.
