A heated moment turned into a brawl at a City Council meeting last week. (See Video here).

Tempers ignited during a vote to cede a public sidewalk in the city of St. Petersburg, Fla. Cheers of celebration and voices of criticism let out following the vote, ending in a fight.

According to the St. Petersburg Times:

The Rev. Bruce Wright, who spent weeks opposing the proposal, yelled: “You are so full of (expletive) it is ridiculous.”

Frederick Dudley, who is the older brother of council member Bill Dudley and who had been in favor of the idea, screamed back: “Why don’t you move?”

Then Frederick Dudley, 76, and Ronald Deaton, 61, a free speech activist, briefly traded insults before Dudley rushed Deaton.

The article reported that the men grabbed each other by the neck and tumbled to the ground in a flurry of punches.


Life in local government can certainly get difficult at times. However, when you think times are rough in your area … well, “It Could Be Worse.”

“It Could Be Worse” focuses on a range of embarrassing stories out there, dedicated to some of the more interesting happenings with those involved in local government across the country. For more, click here.