Lawyer charged in coffee-tossing, punch-throwing incident outside a Center City Starbucks
Philadelphia police on Friday identified the woman accused of throwing coffee and punches at another woman outside a Center City Starbucks store in April.
Philadelphia police on Friday identified the woman accused of throwing coffee and punches at another woman outside a Center City Starbucks store in April.
Yvonne Montgomery, 47, of Wyncote, Montgomery County, turned herself in to Central Detectives on May 24, about a month after police released video of the sidewalk attack.
According to public records, Yvonne Barnes Montgomery is a partner at the Tucker Law Group, at 1617 John F. Kennedy Boulevard in Center City, around the corner from where the alleged attack occurred.
She was charged with misdemeanor counts of simple assault, terroristic threats, and recklessly endangering another person and a summary charge of disorderly conduct by engaging in fighting. Montgomery was released on her own recognizance last month.
A woman who answered the phone at the Tucker Law Group on Friday morning said Montgomery was "not in today." There was no immediate comment from Montgomery.
About 9:15 a.m. April 25, police said, Montgomery got involved in an argument with, then threw a coffee stirrer at, a 54-year-old woman inside the Starbucks at 1600 Arch St. The cause of the altercation was not spelled out.
After both women went outside, they were seen in the surveillance video arguing with each other.
Montgomery threw a cup of coffee in the other woman's face, then punched her in the face and body, police said.
She then grabbed the other woman by her hair, pulling her to the ground, where she continued punching her until a passerby separated the two, police said.
According to the Tucker Law Group's website, Montgomery handles litigation for businesses and individuals. She has represented chemical manufacturing companies, clients in the higher-education field, hospitals and health systems, and police departments, the site says.
She also provides advice on topics such as workplace violence, accommodations for disabled workers, and sexual harassment, the website says.
Before joining the Tucker Law Group, the site says, Montgomery worked as a prosecutor in Delaware County and as a clerk for New Jersey Superior Court Judge Dennis Braithwaite, who has since retired from the bench.
A status hearing in the case is set for June 24 in Municipal Court.
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