STARKVILLE -- Ward 2 Alderman Lisa Wynn threatened Dispatch reporter Carl Smith Thursday with harassment charges if he attempts to contact her for comments in the future.

The exchange came in the lobby of the City Hall shortly before an Audit and Budget meeting. Smith said he said hello to the alderman as she entered the building, and Wynn responded by saying she would seek charges against the reporter if he called her again. The only other person in the lobby at the time was a receptionist.

Smith said he has not called Wynn for more than a week.

It is common practice for reporters to call public officials to seek comments on issues related to their duties.

Wynn joined the Starkville Board of Aldermen on July 1 after defeating incumbent Ward 2 alderman Sandra Sistrunk by a narrow margin.

She has often been involved in contentious issues, including a dispute with Jennifer Gregory of the Greater Starkville Development Partnership over whether a letter Gregory wrote on GSDP leatterhead to the board voicing concerns over the city's sidewalk policy expressed the views of the GSDP board and the firing of long-time chief administrative officer Lynn Spruill and a controversial appointment to the Starkville School District Board of Trustees.