Oct 30, 2007 8:24 pm US/Central
Spicer Mayor Wants Jury For Misdemeanor Trial
WILLMAR, Minn. (AP) ―
Spicer Mayor Perry Wohnoutka asked for a jury trial on the two misdemeanor charges he faces for a Sept. 1 brawl at Melvin's on the Lake in Spicer.
Wohnoutka, 47, appeared with his attorney in Kandiyohi County District Court Tuesday and asked for a one-day jury trial.
Judge Michael J. Thompson set the trial date for Jan. 15, 2008.
Wohnoutka said after the hearing that he will testify in his own defense.
Wohnoutka is charged with fifth-degree assault and disorderly conduct for allegedly hitting a bouncer and a bartender following an evening drinking at Melvin's. The bouncer was trying to assist the mayor onto his bicycle and the bartender was hit in the face after he grabbed the mayor by the shirt and told him to go home, according to the arrest report.
Melvin's owner Dave Baker had ordered bartenders to stop serving alcohol to Wohnoutka and asked the mayor to leave a number of times before the incident, the report said.
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