The feud between rival north St. Louis County Democrats appears to have escalated Thursday night, with a county councilwoman alleging she was assaulted by two of her rivals.
“They physically attacked me,” Councilwoman Shalonda Webb said, referring to state Sen. Angela Walton Mosley and Mosley’s sister, former county councilwoman Rochelle Walton Gray.
All three are Democrats. Neither Mosley nor Gray responded Sunday to voice and text messages.
“They attacked me, and I had to defend myself,” Webb said in an interview Sunday.
Webb said she filed a report with Bellefontaine Neighbors police and has asked for an order of protection against the sisters.
According to Webb, the incident occurred after a town hall meeting, which began at 6 p.m. Thursday at Bellefontaine Neighbors City Hall.
Webb said she was invited to speak by Mayor James Thomas Sr. to give residents an update on county actions and present Thomas with a resolution honoring the municipality’s 75th anniversary.
Mosley and Gray attended the meeting but were not featured speakers, according to Webb.
Webb said the sisters confronted her as she was leaving the building after the meeting.
The conversation became heated. Mosley then struck her in the face, knocking off her glasses and breaking them, Webb said.
The sisters and Webb grabbed each other and grappled until the skirmish was broken up by several people, according to Webb.
Webb said she has given her statement to police and wants charges to be filed against Mosley and possibly Gray.
She also said she grabbed the sisters in self-defense.
“I was scared, given there was two of them and one of me,” Webb said, adding that she had never before been in a fight.
“I don’t think violence is acceptable from anyone but especially not from an elected official,” she said. “And I did not get into this profession for this kind of foolishness.”
Bellefontaine Neighbors Alderwoman Alease Dailes, a political ally of Webb, said she helped break up the confrontation.
Dailes said Mosley used profanity and went up to Webb, who was talking with a member of the public.
Walton “even took off her glasses and put them in her purse as she approached Shalonda,” Dailes said.
Dailes said Webb tried to avoid engaging. “Shalonda kept moving to the right, out of her way,” but Mosley “just kept steady coming at her.”
Dailes said she saw Mosley hit Webb, which prompted Webb to grab onto Mosley. Gray then entered the fracas.
“I still really can’t believe it happened,” Dailes said.
The relationship between Webb and the sisters has been rocky, with election face-offs and a split over supporting County Executive Sam Page.
The sisters and their supporters have been staunch backers of Page, while Webb has butted political heads with Page since she joined the council in 2020.
Mosley and Gray are daughters of Elbert Walton Jr., a former state representative and disbarred lawyer who’s been involved in various controversies over the past five decades.
Webb defeated Gray for a county council seat in 2020 and then withstood a 2024 attempt by Gray to regain the position.
Mosley is married to former state Rep. Jay Mosley, D-Florissant; Gray is married to former state Rep. Alan Gray, D-Black Jack.
The Mosleys’ daughters, Janay and Chanel Mosley — Gray’s nieces — also are Democratic politicians. Chanel Mosley was elected in November to the Missouri House, and Janay Mosley lost to Kem Smith in an effort to succeed Jay Mosley.
As for Webb, she’s married to former state Rep. Steven Webb, who resigned from the House in 2013 after he was accused of misusing money donated to the Missouri Legislative Black Caucus.
The bad blood bubbled over publicly two years ago, at a ceremonial event in September 2023 to mark the beginning of the demolition of Jamestown Mall.
Listed as a featured speaker, Webb objected to Mosley also being listed to make comments. After Mosley was introduced as the next speaker, Webb approached the podium and told the crowd that Mosley had worked behind the scenes in Jefferson City against a $6 million state allocation in 2022 that helped fund the demolition.
“So now that you know the whole truth, I can let the program resume,” Webb said at the event.
In reply, Mosley said at the event that she did support the state funding. She went on to say her sister, Gray, “really was the one who championed this when she was in office.”
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Joe Holleman | Post-Dispatch
Political correspondent/columnist
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