Republican candidate alleged to have punched, choked 15-year-old daughter denies charges
SOUTH BEND — Roosevelt Stewart, a Republican candidate for South Bend Common Council, was allowed a few minutes to make his pitch to voters at a recent forum held ahead of this year’s election.
“If I’m elected,” the 2nd District candidate said onstage at Indiana University South Bend, “the top priority is bringing safety back to the city."
But Stewart didn’t mention during his speech that he's facing charges of domestic battery. His 15-year-old daughter told police that her 46-year-old father drunkenly punched her and choked her one night this August.
More: South Bend council candidate arrested for allegedly punching, choking 15-year-old daughter
In a brief interview following the event, Stewart said his daughter fabricated the story as a plea for his attention and an attempt to pull him out of the race against his Democratic opponent, Ophelia Gooden-Rodgers. Stewart says his daughter fears for his safety because he’s been the target of vandalism since announcing his council bid this February.
“When kids can’t get their way, they will make up things,” Stewart told The Tribune last week. “That stuff is not true. … My baby don’t want me running in the election. We had tires slashed, vehicles burnt, death threats from the phone, and she don’t want me in it. Period.”
In response to the allegations, the St. Joseph County Republican Party released a statement condemning domestic violence. But the party hasn’t disavowed Stewart as a candidate.
More questions are raised by the fact that Stewart's criminal defense attorney, Tom Dixon, is the Republican member of the St. Joseph County Election Board.
And despite a court order to have no contact with the alleged victim, Stewart was joined at the event by a girl he introduced to a reporter as one of his daughters.
The girl introduced herself using the name listed in court documents of the daughter who said Stewart assaulted her.
Allegations that Republican candidate Roosevelt Stewart punched, choked daughter
South Bend Police Department officers say they found Stewart’s daughter with a swollen upper lip and blood dripping from her nose when they arrived at the family’s home in the 1200 block of North Huey Street on Aug. 14, according to a probable cause affidavit.
At the hospital, the 15-year-old girl told police that she had refused to hand over her father’s car keys, believing he was too drunk to drive. In retaliation, she told police, Stewart took her to the ground and began punching her in the face and choking her with both hands. She said she escaped from his grip and called for help.
According to the affidavit, a witness at the home told officers that Stewart took his 15-year-old daughter and 5-year-old niece out to buy snacks at the store. When they returned, the witness heard screaming and yelling.
The witness saw Stewart get in his daughter’s face but didn’t see any physical altercation, she told police. But the witness also observed that the 15-year-old had a newly busted lip afterward, police claim. In addition to being arrested and charged with a felony, Stewart was ordered to have no contact with his 15-year-old daughter and his niece.
Court documents show that Stewart's wife posted bail of $1,500 on Aug. 18 to get him out of jail.
Stewart agreed to speak with The Tribune on Wednesday morning to share his side of the story in more detail. But about 15 minutes before the interview, he called to cancel, saying he had been delayed at a hearing over the custody of his daughter.
Asked to explain how his 15-year-old daughter got a bloody nose and a swollen lip that night, Stewart declined. “I want (my daughter) to be able to tell her statement,” he said. “I want her to be able to speak up for herself.”
Asked if he had violated his no-contact order the night of the IUSB forum, Stewart said no: “That’s a whole ‘nother child.” But Stewart did not correct the girl when she gave her name as that of the 15-year-old.
Stewart also offered to bring the teen to The Tribune newsroom after the case was resolved to explain her making up the allegations, but he did not explain how he knows her story or that she is willing to tell it to journalists if he hasn't had contact with her.
Stewart is charged with a Level 6 felony for domestic battery in the presence of a child younger than 16 and misdemeanor domestic battery of a family or household member.
Stewart has 12 kids, he said during the forum, four of whom live with him. He’s married, but not to the mother of his 15-year-old daughter, he told The Tribune.
Local Republican Party doesn't withdraw support from accused candidate
Only Republican mayoral candidate Desmont Upchurch has publicly said he "can no longer support Roosevelt’s campaign.”
“I have empathy," Upchurch told The Tribune in August, "but at this time, I believe Roosevelt does not need to focus any longer on politics, but to focus on how to repair the hurt to his family.”
But the charges against his fellow Republican also led Upchurch to reveal to The Tribune that he pleaded guilty to misdemeanors for slapping a former girlfriend and stealing money from a past employer more than 20 years ago.
More: South Bend Republican mayoral candidate Desmont Upchurch admits hitting woman 23 years ago
Asked after the forum whether the St. Joseph County GOP is backing Stewart in the election, party chairman Tyler Gillean offered a vague response.
“So he’s on the ballot,” Gillean said. “Legally, there’s no way that he could have dropped off if he wanted to, and there’s no mechanism by which he could have been off. Roosevelt — he’s going to be on the ballot as a Republican.”
Under Indiana election law, candidates had until July 17 this year to withdraw from the ballot for any reason. After that deadline, candidates can withdraw only if they’re disqualified for reasons such as moving out of the election district, being convicted of a felony or death.
“Talking with Roosevelt lately, it seems like there’s been a misunderstanding, possibly, between him and his daughter,” Gillean said. “It’s sensitive because she’s obviously a minor. They’re working through it as a family. They’ve been in our prayers, obviously. But I think it’s still tied up in that (judicial) system.”
The party didn’t give money to Stewart or Upchurch because neither candidate met a required fundraising threshold, Gillean said.
Accused candidate's defense attorney is prominent local Republican
Jeff Kimmell, the chief public defender in St. Joseph County, said Tom Dixon is part of a roster of 32 lawyers who are randomly assigned to represent defendants in criminal cases. If an attorney expressed interest in a case, he said, he would consider assigning it to them.
Dixon told The Tribune that he volunteered to take Stewart’s case because, as someone familiar with election law, he figured he could advise Stewart on the procedures for ending his candidacy. He said he never considered that it might be problematic to represent a Republican candidate for office.
“To me a conflict would arise if a lawyer represents someone else involved in the case who may be adverse to the client …,” Kimmell said. “I don't see anything about Tom’s role on the election board that would be adverse to his representation of this client.”
When Dixon and Stewart met, the accused candidate denied all the charges against him, so the question of withdrawing his candidacy became moot.
“(Stewart) staying in the race doesn't impact me one way or another as a member of the election board or his attorney,” Dixon said. “If something were to come up on the election board, it wouldn’t have anything to do with my defense that I can think of.”
Stewart’s trial is set for Jan. 11 of next year, meaning a judge won’t rule on his case before the Nov. 7 election. Voting started this week in races for South Bend mayor, city clerk and common council.
Email South Bend Tribune city reporter Jordan Smith at JTsmith@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jordantsmith09
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: South Bend Republican denies abusing daughter, breaking protective order
