Runner Accused of Sex Assault Says He ‘Got Caught Up in the Moment’ and ‘Acted on Instincts Honed by Decades of Being a Man in a Society That Emboldens Us to Degrade and Demean Women With Impunity'
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SCREENGRAB VIA CBS.COM
A runner who slapped a female TV reporter on the buttocks during live coverage of a race has broken his silence.
Tommy Callaway, 43, said during an interview that he “got caught up in the moment” when he slapped WSAV-TV’s Alex Bozarjian during the Savanah Bridge Run last Saturday. Video of the incident, including Bozarjian’s stunned reaction, went viral on social media.
“I got caught up in the moment,” Callaway said, “and acted on instincts honed by decades of being a man in a society that emboldens us to degrade and demean women with impunity.”
Callaway was quickly identified through his bib number; race organizers barred him from participating in future races. Bozarjian has filed a sexual battery report against him with local police.
“Words cannot express how deeply sorry I am that I was caught on camera,” Callaway said. “In my defense, I just want to say that my fellow men have humiliated women in various abusive ways—big and small, and in every possible setting—for a long, long time now, and it virtually never gets widespread attention. This long history left me with every expectation that I would get away with slapping (Bozarjian’s) ass.”
“I was wrong about that,” said Callaway. “I understand that now, and I do indeed pledge to ‘do better,’ starting by taking my deeply ingrained feelings of entitlement to abuse and belittle women for my own amusement and suppressing those feelings whenever I suspect there’s a camera nearby.”
Callaway also added that he’s a father and a nice guy.
“I impregnated my wife,” he said, “which I think proves what a good person I am, fundamentally.”
“I look forward to having this thing blow over so things can go back to normal.”
