A Wisconsin father who shoved his daughter’s school principal to stop her from shaking hands reportedly did so because he and his daughter “had issues” with the principal and “didn’t like her.”
Matthew Eddy, 49, was caught on camera shoving Baraboo High School Principal Lainey Briggs aside at his daughter’s high school graduation in late May, saying, “That’s my daughter” and “I don’t want her to touch my daughter.”
The exact cause of the incident is unclear, but a recent police report said: Obtained by WMTV Eddie had “planned it in advance,” based on what he told police shortly afterward.
According to the report, Eddy told police that he and his daughter “had issues with Rainey in the past and didn’t like him,” and then “wanted to stop Rainey from getting the gratification of shaking her body.”
“So he took to the stage to stop that from happening,” the report continued.
The father told police his only regret was how the incident has affected his daughter.
Briggs denied knowing any about who Eddie was, said he only remembered one incident where his daughter was disciplined, and said he “had no idea why.” [Eddy] That’s how he got there.”
Eddie was escorted from the building and charged with disorderly conduct, and Briggs applied for and was granted a restraining order against him.
Briggs detailed the bizarre encounter in a filing in Dane County Court, describing how Eddie “quickly walked up to the stage, pushed me away with both hands and said, ‘Don’t touch my f**king daughter.'”
The administrator “kept his distance” and told Eddie to stop touching him, but the father “kept pushing me and prying at me,” the report said.
“This happened in front of two or three thousand people,” Briggs added.
Briggs himself has not filed any charges against Eddie.
Mr Eddy appeared to be specifically targeting Ms Briggs, while several other school officials were unaffected and freely shook hands with his daughter.
Briggs has recently been embroiled in controversy along with School Board Chairman Kevin Vodak, who is facing calls for his removal over allegations that he misused taxpayer money to boost the salaries of school custodians.
However, while Vodak was onstage at the time and even shook hands with his daughter, Eddie appears to have been targeting only Briggs.
Some have speculated that the incident may have been motivated by racism, as Eddie is white and Briggs was the only black person onstage.
The school has been at the center of racial controversy in the past: In 2018, a group of seniors were photographed making Nazi salutes and holding up other signs associated with white supremacy during a prom photo shoot.
Eddy did not respond to The Washington Post’s request for comment.
