By Dave Ryan

CAMBRIDGE – City Commission President Lajan Cephas was arrested Sunday, and charged with second-degree assault following a dispute in her home.

On Nov. 20, at approximately 12:10 p.m., Cambridge Police Department officers responded to the 400 block of Eagles Nest Way for a disturbance. Contact was made with the victim, who reported that an assault had occurred.

Through investigation and evidence obtained on scene it showed that an assault had occurred. The suspect was identified as Lajan Cephas, 41 years old of Cambridge.

Cephas was arrested and transported to CPD for processing. Cephas had her initial appearance before a Court Commissioner and was turned over to the Dorchester County Department of Corrections on No Bond. She was released from commitment on her own recognizance on Monday, after a bail hearing.

The victim, Charles Saunders, posted a video of the incident on Facebook. In the video, Cephas is seen raising a metal bar, and a man can be heard calling out, “Don’t you hit me, Jan.”

Cephas has recently called for a youth curfew to curb criminal activity in Cambridge. A public forum is set to discuss the topic on Nov. 28.

After former mayor Andrew Bradshaw’s arrest and resignation for posting intimate photos of a former girlfriend, Cephas took over as acting mayor, a post she held until this fall’s election. She represents the city’s Second Ward.

The city’s website says Cephas is a graduate of the Eastern Shore Criminal Justice Academy, specializing in corrections. She was a Correctional Officer Drill Instructor at the Eastern Shore Criminal Justice Academy at Wor-Wic Community College and was employed as a Correctional Officer for the Dorchester County Detention Center. While at the Detention Facility she was an Assistant Shift Supervisor with a ranking of Corporal, the site says.

Her trial is set for Dec. 28 in District Court.