Pageant queen accused of creating ‘explosive’ scene

(CNS): One of two men allegedly assaulted by pageant queen Tiffany Conolly (24) described a “chaotic and explosive situation” late on a Sunday night one year ago when the young woman came to his house looking for his son. The victim, who was the first witness in the trial of this year’s Miss Cayman Islands Universe on several counts of assault and damage to property, told the court he was shocked by the events that night when she punched, bit, kicked and head-butted him and his son as she tried to gain entry to their home.

The West Bay resident and local businessman gave a harrowing and detailed account of the night when he was physically assaulted by Conolly, who had just broken up with his son following a short relationship. He described an unprovoked attack that began almost as soon as he opened the door to her but refused her entry, telling her it was late and that she should go home and she could talk to his son the following day.

Instead, she slapped him in the head and shouted for his son to come out of the house, he said. The violence of the slap knocked his glasses from his head, and although he pleaded with her not to damage them, he said that “she stared me in the face and crumpled the glasses in both her hands” and then punched him in the head as she tried to push her way through the door.

He said he did his best to remain firmly in the doorway as his son came to the door and he called the police, but she assaulted both men. Although they attempted to restrain her, the witness said, he received several blows and a bust lip from Conolly, who also ripped his shirt in her rage. However, he and his son had remained on the line to the police as the attack unfolded.

He said he was “extremely conscious of the situation”, which was “explosive” and even “terrifying”, since there were no other witnesses to Conolly’s behaviour and he was aware of how two men engaging with a young woman in such a chaotic situation might appear. He said that he had called out to a neighbour to come and witness what was going on.

As they tried their best to restrain Conolly and avoid further injury, she continued to try to land blows and kicks on the men, but she eventually pulled away and moved back from the front door. At that point, the two men both went inside their home and closed the door. But as the witness went to the window, he immediately saw that Conolly had not left the area as he had hoped. Instead, she picked up the bicycle on which she had arrived and threw it at his car, smashing the windscreen.

He told the court that she then picked up a cement block and headed towards his son’s car. Seeing this, the witness said, he went back to the front door and once again urged her to stop what she was doing and go home. But she then used the block to smash the window of the second car, before throwing the block toward him. Fortunately, it missed and landed on the road, breaking into pieces, he said.

At that point, his son came to the doorway and Conolly continued heading toward them even more enraged, the witness said. As she approached, he again did his best to retrain her but she continued to lash out, kicking his son in the testicles “very hard” and biting him on his chest, before she turned back to the witness, who was holding her arms, and headbutted him.

As the chaotic scene continued to escalate the men did their best to restrain her and try to stop the violence. After what he said felt like a very long time but was probably only a matter of minutes, a white car pulled into the parking area.

The witness hoped it was the police but it turned out to be Conolly’s mother. As she got out of the car, the witness described “quite a moving moment” in the middle of the melee. He said that as the mother spoke with her daughter, Conolly finally seemed to calm down. She turned to her mother and said quietly, “Mummy, why do they always do this to me?”

Explaining the background to the court, the witness said that after his son’s short and volatile relationship with Conolly and because of other events he had witnessed that caused him concern, he had made it clear to his son that he didn’t want the young woman to come to the house anymore. He said he believed there was a danger to his son continuing to see her, as he was aware that the young woman was dealing with mental health issues.

However, he said that he was aware his son was still in contact with Conolly and may have seen her outside the family home. Although the relationship was ending, he said he felt his son was trying to part ways with her as gently as possible.

During cross-examination by the attorney representing Conolly, the witness categorically refuted any claims that she had tripped and fallen on the house steps and that he and her son had restrained her on the floor. The lawyer suggested that the blows inflicted were as a result of her trying to get away from them. However, the witness repeated his version of events and explained that they had not restrained her to stop her from getting away but to stop her from assaulting them.

The police finally turned up and the first officer on the scene described Conolly as “agitated and yelling”. He told the court how, after taking a brief account of the circumstances, he took her away from the two men and placed her in cuffs before putting her in the back of his patrol car. As two more officers arrived at the scene Conolly began kicking the patrol car door and became agitated again. At that point, he handed the young woman into the custody of the arriving officers and left the scene.

The second officer told the court that she arrested Conolly for damage to property and told her that an investigation would take place in relation to allegations of assault. The court heard that Conolly remained agitated throughout the journey to the detention centre, banging on the patrol car cage and the doors and windows of the car, cursing and shouting, repeatedly telling the officers, “F*^k you all!”

Soon after arriving at the detention centre, after a period of calm, Conolly became agitated again and went on to punch the arresting female police officer twice and threatened her with a chair before she was eventually taken to the HSA for a mental health evaluation.

The case, which is being presided over by Magistrate Philippa McFarlane, was adjourned Monday evening before the crown finished presenting its evidence. It is scheduled to resume on 5 December.

Conolly, who was bailed to appear on that date, is currently suspended from public appearances as Miss Cayman Islands Universe as a result of the case but she has retained the crown and title. The Miss Universe pageant is set to take place in New Orleans on 14 January, and unless Conolly is convicted before that date, it is understood she will be representing the Cayman Islands in the contest.