2 men charged after physical confrontation at a Gilbert Republican meeting

Two men were charged in connection to multiple misdemeanors after a confrontation at a Gilbert political meeting earlier this month.

Stephen Hunsaker, 51, and Nathan Hunsaker, 50, were charged with three misdemeanors after a Gilbert police investigation into an altercation at a meeting in mid-July.

Stephen Hunsaker was charged with two charges of disorderly conduct and one charge of third-degree criminal trespass. Nathan Hunsaker was charged with one assault charge, two disorderly conduct charges and one third-degree criminal trespass.

The dispute developed during a meeting of the Legislative District 14 Republicans after comments by Rep. Laurin Hendrix, R-Gilbert, about information he received that suggested he could tie one of his opponents to the “Gilbert Goons,” the teenage gang that has terrorized other teens in the southeast Valley . Members recorded their blitz-style attacks on teens in parks and parking garages, outside fast-food restaurants and at house parties. Seven of those affiliated with the group face charges in the killing of 16-year-old Preston Lord in October.

Hendrix said he told a meeting of the Legislative District 14 Republicans that he rejected the overture, never used the information, and held up the tip as an example of how nasty and negative campaigns have become.

But the comments angered Nathan Hunsaker, husband of the legislative candidate in question, Lalani Hunsaker. Nathan Hunsaker, along with his brother, tried to shout down Hendrix.

After the situation escalated Andrew Adams, the chairman of the East Valley district, intervened. He said he moved the two protesters out of the meeting room and told them they could not reenter because they were “trespassing” and violating the district rules to maintain decorum.

At this point, Adams told The Arizona Republic, "Nathan Hunsaker gets on his tiptoes and headbutts me."

A video provided by Adams from the church where the meeting was held showed people milling in the lobby of Redeemer Bible Church. There was a moment where a man was seen lunging toward a man identified as Adams, but head-to-head contact was not captured on the video.

In a written statement on Tuesday afternoon, Lalani Hunsaker lamented the outcome of the investigation and defended the two men.

“We are wasting taxpayer resources over two grown adults telling each other to shut up. The real story here is a dad defending his son and family versus a few old men using the media to try to shore up a victory next Tuesday,” Hunsaker said in the statement.

But for Adams, this incident was more than just a simple shouting match.

“I think the video speaks for itself and I think the charges are very clear, I appreciate the professionalism of the Gilbert Police Department,” Adams said. “Everyone will have their day in court.”

Republic reporter Mary Jo Pitzl contributed to this article.

Reach reporter Fernando Cervantes Jr. at fernando.cervantes@gannett.com .

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: 2 men charged after physical confrontation at a Gilbert Republican meeting