Joan Parker of Colfax admits she kissed a man on the cheek at the event Saturday, called Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Day. She says he was yelling and waving his Bible, and she just thought he needed a hug.
That man, 49-year-old James Edward Belcher of Taylorsville, says Parker shouldn't have approached him. He says charges certainly would have been filed against him if he tried to hug a 74-year-old woman he doesn't know.
Rory Collins, the police chief in Salisbury, where it happened, says an unwanted touch is considered an assault.
Parker has a Sept. 12 court date on the misdemeanor charge.
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Online:
Video of Belcher preaching at the Salisbury event: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jz3lcjxV-C0
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Martha Waggoner can be reached at —http://twitter.com/mjwaggonernc
