This past Thursday about 8:30 p.m. Missouri City council candidate Noel Pinnock’s wife, Tiffany, filed a complaint with the Missouri City Police Department alleging that her husband’s opponent, Councilman Jerry Wyatt, had a verbal altercation with her.

In the complaint, Tiffany Pinnock alleges that about 6:30 p.m. while she and Wyatt were putting out election signs, the incident occurred in the area of the 1600 block of Turtle Creek Drive, according to Capt. John Bailey, Missouri City Police Department spokesman.

Bailey said detectives will take statements from both individuals and then a decision will be made on whether to file charges or not. The captain said, “If Mrs. Pinnock was threatened in a verbal exchange, it could be a Class C assault charge potentially, which would be a municipal court charge and punishable by a fine. It’s hard to determine that now.”

Wyatt said no verbal exchange occurred. “I was coming home Thursday evening and saw one of Noel Pinnock’s signs blocking my sign. I turned (my truck) around to move the sign and a friend of mine drove up and stopped and we chatted for a few minutes. I said I was moving my sign and apparently she (Tiffany Pinnock) was in the left turn lane to make a turn onto (FM) 2234, so I turned around from the man I was visiting with and he made his right turn on 2234. When I reached to get my sign, I heard this voice say ‘don’t touch my sign you old a.. mother f..... we’re gonna beat your old a..,’ and then she drove off when the light changed.

“I moved my sign, got in my truck and went home, ate real quick and went to deliver a sign to somebody in Lake Olympia and I was there for an HOA (homeowner association) meeting at 7 p.m. The furthest thing from my mind was this woman. “I have talked to an attorney and what I offered her is she can take a polygraph, if she’s telling the truth.” Wyatt said if she takes one, he will too.

Noel Pinnock said in an e-mailed statement: “I received a disturbing call from my wife and 10-year-old son Thursday, April 24, 2008. They reported to me that Tiffany was threatened by Jerry Wyatt because he felt he could police a sign that was placed on a property that did not even belong to him. My son was very shaken up because he didn’t know if this man was really going to try to hurt his mom. My wife is 117 pounds and for a man who is almost 2/3 her size to engage in a verbal assault is a very bad thing.

“If it were me, he would have never approached. I like to keep things friendly but as we all know, politics can be dirty. I was able to comfort my wife and provide my son counseling because I used this situation as a teachable opportunity. He knew before and knows the importance of not disrespecting anyone, especially women and children. I was just raised that way.

“Jerry Wyatt owes my wife and son an apology; however, I doubt if they get one. We all affect people either positively or negatively. We just need to be sure there are more positive than negative moments.”