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Posted: Thursday, 24 December 2009 7:50AM
Attorney charged in courthouse belly bump
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AURORA (STNG) -- A quiet morning in the Kane County courthouse turned interesting Wednesday when two lawyers bumped bellies, resulting in battery charges for one.
Aurora attorney Christopher Carroll was charged with misdemeanor battery in the altercation with Elgin attorney Jonathon Carbary. The incident took place in the hallway on the first floor of the courthouse in St. Charles Township, the Kane County Sheriff's office confirmed.
Carroll was charged with using his stomach to hit Carbary's stomach.
Tempers began to flare in the courtroom, where Carbary and Carroll were opposing each other on a motion to reconsider in a child custody case. Carroll said he did not appreciate the way that Carbary dismissively threw down a court document.
The argument continued to heat up over scheduling the next court date. Afterward, in the hallway, the men converged -- although the amount of belly contact is in dispute.
Carroll said he simply brushed up against Carbary.
"We're obese middle-aged men," Carroll said. "I guess I got a little too close. He did not sprawl backward."
Carbary disagrees with all of that statement.
"I bike 1,200 miles a year," Carbary said. "I'm 60 years old, but I'm not fat."
Carbary said Carroll was screaming when he came up at "a fast pace" and chest-bumped him. Carbary described the contact as similar to celebrations that football players have.
"He didn't brush up," he said. "He ran up to me."
Carbary was unsure what made Carroll so angry.
"I never touched the man. I never raised my voice," Carbary said. "If I took a punch at him, he'd be picking up his teeth, so I did a smart thing."
Carroll was arrested and brought next door to the Kane County jail, where he was released on bail. Carbary said he plans to follow through on this case.
"I would have let it go, but lawyers are supposed to set an example, and you can't have this happen," Carbary said.
The veteran attorneys said they barely knew each other before the child custody case.
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Sun-Times Media Wire Chicago Sun-Times 2009. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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