The runner who slapped a woman's behind as she reported on a 10K race in Georgia, a youth minister and Boy Scout leader, says he got "caught up in the moment," feels bad and will try to do better in the future.
Tommy Callaway, 43, a married father of two, slapped WSAV-TV anchor Alex Bozarjian on Saturday in Savannah, Georgia, on live television.
Bozarjian shared her outrage on Twitter, saying he "violated, objectified, and embarrassed" her.
Bozarjian said she filed a police report, according to the New York Post.
She was reporting for WSAV-TV during the Savannah Bridge Run.
Callaway told Inside Edition: "I was getting ready to bring my hands up and wave to the camera to the audience, there was a misjudge in character and decision-making. I touched her back; I did not know exactly where I touched her."
The Savannah Sports Council identified Callaway from the video and banned from future races.
"We will not tolerate behavior like this at a Savannah Sports Council event," the organization posted on Twitter. "We have made the decision to ban this individual from registering for all Savannah Sports Council owned races."
The New York Post reported that Callaway's lawyer, Joseph Turner, called him a "loving husband and father who is very active in his community" and church, that he was "working with those involved to correct the situation," and that he "did not act with any criminal intentions."
Bozarjian, a multimedia journalist for Savannah's WSAV, graduated cum laude from the University of Central Florida with a double major in broadcast journalism and Latin American studies, according to her TV station bio.
