The brother of slain therapist Amie Harwick wants TV host Wendy Williams to apologise to her family.
“Domestic violence is something no one should be joking about,” Chris Harwick told Fox News this week. “This is a difficult time for my family and for Wendy Williams to make light of this tragedy is very upsetting to us and extremely distasteful.”
Chris’ demand came after she appeared to joke about his sister Amie’s death during her show Monday.
Amie, a family therapist who was previously engaged to TV star and ‘The Price Is Right’ host Drew Carey, was killed on February 15 at her Hollywood Hills home. CBS cancelled tapings of the game show after news of her death, which had left host Carey “overcome with grief.”
During Monday’s Hot Topics segment of ‘The Wendy Williams Show’, the TV host brought up the death and mentioned some of the details of the crime, including how officers found her body on the ground beneath a third-story balcony.
“She was killed, not by Drew, but by the ex,” Williams told her audience. Then she said the ‘Price Is Right’ catchphrase, “Come on down!,” and moved her head to the side and down as if following an object as it fell. People in the audience remained quiet. Williams quickly came under fire on social media.
As of Thursday afternoon, the TV host had made no public comment on the incident.
In the statement to Fox, Chris said his sister “worked tirelessly for domestic violence victims and women’s rights. Wendy Williams should apologise publicly to my family for her comment.”
Suspect Gareth Pursehouse, Amie’s ex-boyfriend, was rearrested Wednesday and charged with one count of murder after bailing out of jail earlier this week. According to court records, Amie had applied for restraining orders against Pursehouse twice, alleging repeated harassment by him after she ended their relationship.
Los Angeles County coroner officials determined that Amie died of blunt force injuries to her head and torso.