SALEM — Two women who have laid claim to the same man found themselves in custody after getting into a brawl in a Salem courtroom while the court was in session yesterday.
Kaity Kartalias, 31, of 14 Central St., Beverly, is the longtime girlfriend of Gary Lee Farnham, 27, who was in court yesterday on charges that he had assaulted Kartalias when she questioned him about a phone call she had received from another woman.
Rachel Lord had allegedly called Kartalias to tell her that she was now Farnham's girlfriend, Kartalias told police.
Because Farnham is already on probation in another assault and threats case, the new charges led Judge Robert Cornetta to order that he remain in custody until a hearing next month.
During the hearing, Kartalias allegedly figured out where Lord was sitting and sat down right next to her, telling her, "So, we finally meet," according to a woman who was sitting next to the two.
After Cornetta announced his decision holding Farnham, Lord, 22, who was unhappy about the judge's ruling, made a comment. Kartalias suddenly "sucker-punched" the younger woman in front of a courtroom full of onlookers, including the judge.
The two women screamed vulgarities at each other as they went to the floor, arms swinging. Lord got a fistful of Kartalias' hair and pulled it out, leaving a large clump on the floor, before court officers could separate the pair.
Meanwhile, Cornetta, who had moved on to the next case, called a recess. He ordered the court officers to put the women in custody.
As the two women were led out of the courtroom in handcuffs, they continued their verbal exchange.
Prosecutors, who were in the courtroom during the fight, decided not to pursue charges against Lord after concluding that Kartalias was the instigator.
Kartalias was arraigned on charges of assault and battery and disrupting a court proceeding; she pleaded not guilty. Through her lawyer, she denied starting the fight and said she was afraid of Lord, who she says showed up at her house several weeks ago and threatened her.
But after her lawyer's argument, Kartalias blurted out, "I didn't mean to do it in the courtroom."
Because Kartalias is currently on probation — in a case in which she was caught stealing a can of tuna from Steve's Quality Market in Salem and then got into a fight with the store employee — Judge Dunbar Livingston ordered her held without bail pending a probation violation hearing. He also set bail at $500 cash in the new case.
A pretrial hearing in the case is scheduled for June 2.
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