What started as a peaceful evening filled with music in a Houston park ended in chaos when a woman dubbed by the internet as “Bagpipe Karen” was arrested for assault.
Scott Gibb, who is originally from Scotland, was honoring his family’s heritage by playing his bagpipes along Terry Hershey Park Trail in Memorial, Houston, Texas, when he was aggressively approached by an irate 76-year-old Eunice Isgur.
Things turned very strange and physical after that.
Isgur claimed Gibb had “no right to play” his bagpipes in the park
According to Gibb, he was simply playing his bagpipes as usual when Isgur demanded that he stop the music immediately.
“She said I had no right to play here in this public park,” Gibb recalled.
What unfolded next was a bizarre clash that escalated far beyond a noise complaint.
According to Gibb, Isgur became aggressive and quickly pulled her husband, who she claimed was a federal judge, into the situation. “She said, ‘I’m gonna call my husband. He’s a federal judge, and he’s gonna make you stop,’” Gibb told ABC13.
Records confirm that Eunice Isgur is indeed married to a man with the same name as a U.S. bankruptcy judge. While the judge himself is not accused of any wrongdoing, Gibb said a man did show up at the scene after Isgur made the call.
The strange encounter escalated into something physical
In an effort to stop Gibb from playing, Isgur allegedly came up to him and directed her smartphone’s flashlight into his eyes.
“She literally got her phone, put the flashlight on, and shoved it right in my face, blinding my eyes as I was playing,” Gibb said in an interview with Inside Edition.
When Gibb’s wife started filming the incident too, Isgur allegedly lashed out. “She basically swiped at my wife’s face,” he said.
A charging document later confirmed that Isgur managed to strike Gibb’s wife’s arm.
According to Gibb, Isgur then proceeded to grab his wife’s backpack, resulting in both women falling onto the ground. The fall seemed to have resulted in Isgur getting a black eye.
The encounter didn’t end there. Gibb said Isgur’s husband eventually joined her, and both began following his wife along the trail.
A cellphone video captured the moment, showing the couple trailing the woman as she walked and filmed the situation behind her.
“As she was walking, she was videoing behind her, and this big guy and the woman were chasing after her,” Gibb recalled.
Isgur was ultimately arrested and charged with misdemeanor assault. She reportedly has no prior criminal history in Harris County.
Gibb told reporters this wasn’t the first time Isgur had confronted him. He stated that she had approached him weeks earlier with the same complaint about his bagpipes, though that interaction did not turn physical.
That interaction was not reported to the authorities, either.
Despite the harrowing experience, Gibb is determined to keep playing his music
Gibb, who plays a set of bagpipes passed down from his grandfather, says the tradition means a lot to him, and that most Texans actually love the instrument’s sound.
“Texans just love the sound of the pipe,” he said.
“This was one of the few negative reactions I’ve had,” Gibb added.
Eunice Isgur declined to provide a comment when approached at her home.
Her attorney, Ryan Patrick, who is the son of Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, did not respond to requests for comment.
The judge’s office similarly stayed silent.
The incident has stirred strong reactions online, especially considering the involvement of a federal judge’s apparent spouse.
Some have questioned whether a simple disagreement in a public park should have ever escalated to threats, aggression, and alleged assault.
Gibb, for his part, just wants some peace to play music. “You can’t have people so disrespectful and attacking for no reason at all,” he said.
The internet has responded to the incident by dubbing Isgur as “Bagpipe Karen,” considering her overreaction towards the soulful, melodic sound of Gibb’s bagpipes.
Many have also expressed support for Gibb, encouraging him to continue playing his music.
The incident received polarizing reactions from netizens
