Shopping trip turned violent when punches started flying.
Last week, a very chaotic scene played out in a Colorado Springs Walmart when two women got into an intense physical altercation, possibly over social distancing.
Both women were shopping at the Walmart located on 3201 East Platte Avenue when things escalated. According to bystanders, the women were standing in line to check out when one woman got upset and began throwing things off the conveyer belt, and the argument quickly turned physical.
Brianna Carroll was shopping at the store with her mom and caught part of the incident on video, which she shared on Facebook:
As the video plays, voices can be heard saying, "She wasn’t six feet away." However, it's unclear who is speaking.
Although there is a statewide mask mandate, and Walmart has a mask rule in place for shoppers, neither of the women involved is wearing a mask. Employees intervene and try to break the two up. Carroll says the whole thing escalated in a matter of minutes.
According to the Colorado Springs Police Department, no one was seriously injured in the altercation; one woman, Laura Barr, 60, has been arrested and is charged with third-degree assault. Walmart has yet to comment on the incident, and neither woman involved has given a public statement.
This altercation is difficult to watch, in part, because it highlights the tension and stress many of us feel going out in public these days. Mask mandates have been met with acceptance by some, and have been advocated against by others.
Fortunately, no one was seriously injured in this latest incident.
What do you think about all of this? Have you encountered or witnessed hostility when out and about due to masks and social distancing? Share your experiences with us in the comments.