A City of Alpharetta councilman remained free on bond Monday, 10 days after he was booked in to the Fulton County jail on a domestic violence charge.
Michael Cross, 40, of Alpharetta, surrendered Feb. 27 and was later released on a signature bond, booking records showed. Alpharetta police charged Cross with battery for allegedly throwing a bathroom trash can at his wife, causing bruising and bleeding to her face, the incident report states.
“My husband just threw a trashcan at me,” Laurie Cross told a 911 dispatcher. “Previously he’s broken my finger. He took my cell phone and I had to run downstairs.”
A frantic Laurie Cross called police around 10:30 p.m. Feb. 22 after an argument between the couple led to the physical altercation, she said in the 911 call. She told police she had had an alcoholic drink but her husband had not. Laurie Cross told the dispatcher the incident started because she wanted her husband to complete chores.
Michael Cross was gone when officers arrived, but he was interviewed by officers the following day. He told police his wife had thrown a toilet brush at him.
“Michael feared that he was going to be struck by another object, when he tossed the plastic trashcan at her,” the report states.
Though she called 911, Laurie Cross told officers she did not want her husband to be charged. But by Georgia law, the state prosecutes on behalf of the victim, whether or not he or she supports it, the report states.
Michael Cross, an attorney, was elected to the City Council in November 2011 and formerly served as chair of the Alpharetta Downtown Development Authority. He was also a founding member of the board of directors of the Alpharetta Public Safety Foundation.
In 2013, he was arrested on a DUI charge while driving with his son. But in January 2014, Cross was acquitted in that case.
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