When arrested, Karen Fletcher reportedly yelled to her daughter, “When I get out on parole, you are SO grounded!”
Photo by Jack Yang
On Sunday, December 1, the La Jolla Police Dept. had to intervene at a Christmas karaoke night when a political debate escalated out of control. Sue Fletcher, an 86 year-old grandmother, had invited her children and their families to her home for a night of Christmas carols in what is reportedly a “beloved family tradition.” The conversation at the karaoke night allegedly got out of hand when politics were introduced to the mix. “This happens every year, but I can never stop feeling shocked about it,” Fletcher said, wiping tears away. “I just wanted to sing White Christmas.” Other family members later reported that it was “definitely a very white Christmas.”
LJPD received a call at 10:43 p.m. from one of Fletcher’s granddaughters, claiming that her family was “going crazy.” Bradley Hooper, the first-responding officer, said, “There was screaming and crying in the background, and this girl sounded panicked, so we rushed out to the house. Although the situation did not turn out to be as violent as we expected, I think it was good for everyone that we came when we did — they were about to discuss the Confederate flag.”
Officer Hooper went on to describe the scene. According to his testimony, Officer Hooper “saw a woman standing on her chair and shouting at a man who was aggressively banging his ‘MAGA’ hat on the table in rhythm with the twentieth repeat of ‘All I Want for Christmas is You.’” The officers arrested the woman, who was later identified as Karen Fletcher, and threatened to arrest the man with the MAGA hat, Ryan Fletcher, her husband.
Sue Fletcher’s oldest granddaughter, Kayleigh Rider, spoke about calling the police. “I wasn’t gonna do anything until my aunt Karen started harping about what a good idea that goddamn wall would be. That’s when I thought to myself, ‘enough is enough.’ Every year I put up with these fossils talking politics as if they haven’t ruined the nation for us kids. I was just gonna repress my rage as always, until I remembered they all hate me anyway. So I called the cops, and I don’t regret it one bit.” Rider is currently “grounded until she leaves for college” in two years.
Bob Wellington, Sue Fletcher’s son-in-law, commented on the state of the night: “It was utter chaos. I love my wife, but I’ll be damned if her family isn’t insane. By the end of it, Susan’s mom was crying, the dog ran away, and that goddamn Karen woman was standing on her chair screaming at her brother. But the worst part was that the carolers at our door were just staring through it all. They did sing an impressive ‘Jingle Bell Rock’, though.”
Sue Fletcher’s brother was the only person to report a positive experience. “It’s the most entertaining thing I’ve seen in years! This definitely beats the time Bob choked on Sue’s Thanksgiving turkey because it was so dry, and then Karen yelled at the ER lady about the war on Christmas. Oh, and I still have scars from when Ryan threw the ham carving knife after Kayleigh tried to tell him Obama was born in America. Anyways, what I’m saying is that it’s great to see this family making progress, and I can’t wait for next year!”
At any given moment, Ayushi Banerjee can be found in a vine-covered back alley cafe, drinking hot chocolate and passionately dismantling the stigma around talking about issues of inequality and discrimination. Just like the word "moist," this dog lover is "valid" and "funny." And yes, Ayushi likes sushi.
