KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A county lawmaker was arrested Monday afternoon following a meeting of the Jackson County Legislature, KMBC's Martin Augustine reported.

The Legislature was meeting in a room on the second floor of the Jackson County Courthouse. According to the police report, a disturbance involving at least two legislators broke out immediately after the meeting was adjourned.

Augustine reported that there was a verbal fight, and then a fistfight broke out. The two men involved in the fight were legislators Dan Tarwater and Robert Stringfield.

Part of the dispute was caught on tape. Stringfield and Tarwater were seen standing nose to nose before a physical confrontation started.

Tarwater told KMBC that he was the victim and was punched.

"It kind of caught me off guard," Tarwater said.

"Did he take a swing at you?" Augustine asked.

"Yes. Came all the way down, took his tie off and he was ready to rumble," Tarwater said. "It seems like he just kind of snapped ... I sure wish it could have been avoided. I didn't want it to happen, but I had to defend myself."

However, one witness said Stringfield was the victim and that Tarwater started the fight, Augustine reported.

"(Stringfield) was very composed. He was getting up to leave, and next thing you know, Tarwater hit him right in the chin -- popped him," audience member Bill Wilcox told KMBC.

Stringfield was taken into custody and later released. The Jackson County Sheriff's Department said assault charges are pending.

A special prosecutor will be named in the case.

Augustine reported that there is some bad blood between Stringfield and his fellow lawmakers. Stringfield has filed a lawsuit claiming that the legislators broke the open meetings law.

In December, Tarwater sponsored a budget deal to slash Strinfield's staff budget, in part, to pay for the lawsuit's legal fees.

Monday's fight may have been related to a heated discussion about one of Stringfield's aides, Augustine reported. Stringfield was defending an aide whom he believes was mistreated while trying to get a video copy of a recent meeting.

Stringfield told KMBC's Micheal Mahoney that the fight was an accumulation of things.

"I went over to Tarwater. He stood up. I thought he was going to punch me, so I grabbed him," Stringfield said.

Stringfield said his fellow legislators are setting it up to get him out of the picture.

Augustine reported that County Executive Kathryn Shields recently had a long, face-to-face conversation with Stringfield.