Inset, left to right: Briasia White and Lamarian Girtman, according to McLennan County Jail records. Background: the Waco, Texas, apartment complex where police say the siblings allegedly fought (Google Maps).
A disagreement over grapes allegedly escalated into a violent confrontation and death threat between two siblings at a Waco, Texas, apartment complex, police said.
Briasia White, 20, was arrested on suspicion of injury to a child, while her 18-year-old brother, Lamarian Girtman, faces a charge of assault causing bodily injury to a family member, according to the Waco Police Department.
The alleged altercation took place at about 7 p.m. Sept. 24 at the Tribeca Apartments on Sanger Avenue, authorities said.
That night, officers responded to a domestic disturbance, according to an affidavit obtained by Waco-based CBS and Telemundo KWTX.
Charging documents state that the siblings and their mother met officers outside the apartment. Police asked Girtman to remain outside while they initially interviewed White.
White told investigators the dispute began after she confronted Girtman for eating grapes she had recently bought.
According to police, the argument intensified within moments.
The affidavit says Girtman became angry and shouted at White even after she walked away, entered another room, closed the door and locked it.
Police said Girtman then repeatedly struck the door until he created a hole in it, according to the charging document.
White told her brother that she would spray him with “mace” if he opened the door and entered the room. Investigators said she did not wait for him to come inside.
Instead, White said she opened the door in an effort to prevent further damage and sprayed Girtman with pepper spray, the affidavit states.
Girtman allegedly shielded himself with his jacket before punching White repeatedly on the side of her head. At one point, he reportedly put his arm around her neck and told her, “I’m going to kill you,” according to the charging document.
White ultimately broke free by punching her brother, bringing the reported attack to an end, authorities said.
Girtman confirmed that the dispute started over the grapes, police said, but gave investigators a different account of how the fight unfolded.
He told police that White began punching him in the face after becoming upset about the grapes, according to the affidavit.
Girtman also claimed White was the first to raise her voice and become angry as the argument escalated, the charging document says.
However, Girtman reportedly acknowledged that he attacked his sister as well. He told investigators he expected to go to jail and said he could not remember part of the confrontation because he blacked out in anger during the violence.
A third sibling was reportedly caught in the middle while trying to stop the fight. Police said the younger sibling told them White slapped him when he stepped between the two older siblings. Girtman also told investigators that White had slapped their younger brother.
White initially denied striking the younger sibling, but after officers read her Miranda rights, she acknowledged her involvement in the alleged violence, according to the charging document.
Both suspects were booked into the McLennan County Jail last week and have since been released after posting bond, jail records show.
