Brant Walker, the mayor of Alton, Illinois, said he is “embarrassed” after his wife, Shannon was found partying at a local bar police busted over the weekend, violating a stay-at-home order, The Hill reports.
Walker issued the statement on Facebook after Alton Police Chief Jason “Jake” Simmons reported that officers broke up the party at Hiram’s Tavern at approximately 1 a.m. Sunday.
“I was also made aware that my wife was in attendance at this prohibited social gathering. I instructed the Police Chief to treat her as he would any citizen violating the ‘Stay At Home’ order and to ensure that she received no special treatment,” he wrote.
Walker’s wife was discovered among “several” people “located inside Hiram’s Tavern in an area outside public view, clearly disregarding the executive order and public pleas for compliance,” the Alton police department said.
The embarrassing Sunday incident came 24 hours after Walker again pleaded with residents to follow the state’s stay at home order. After police reported that people were continuing to defy the rules, the mayor said he had directed the city’s police department to use its discretion in issuing citations and arrests.
“These are very serious times and I’m begging you to please stay at home and parents, please keep your kids at home, doing so is vital to our health,” he said at a press briefing on Friday.
“I have directed the police department to use their discretion in issuing citations or making arrests to those refusing to follow the state issued stay at home mandate. We will do whatever it takes to decrease the spread of this deadly virus,” he added.
Walker further noted in his statement that his wife is an adult who can make her own decisions and exhibited a “stunning lack of judgement.”
“My wife is an adult capable of making her own decisions, and in this instance, she exhibited a stunning lack of judgment,” he said. “She now faces the same consequences for her ill-advised decision as the other individuals who chose to violate the ‘Stay At Home’ order during this incident.”