Independent U.S. Senate candidate and TV reality star Thomas Ravenel has been accused of assaulting a woman in his downtown Charleston residence, closing a door onto her and causing her to topple down three stairs into some bushes, leaving her bruised.

The woman who filed the complaint, Lauren Wells Moser, 32, of Moncks Corner, identified herself as the stylist to Ravenel's girlfriend, Kathryn Dennis, the mother of his infant child.

Ravenel also reportedly fell into a swimming pool while carrying the infant girl during the incident, according to the account Moser gave to the Charleston Police Department.

No charges were immediately filed but it was at least the second allegation involving Ravenel that's been reported to authorities this election season. He previously was accused of harassing his former political consultant.

Ravenel told The Post and Courier he would cooperate with law enforcement and expected to be cleared of any wrong-doing, but that he had not yet been contacted by police.

"I am totally confident that once the police investigation is completed, the truth will come out," he said, adding that the complaint is without merit.

According to the account Moser gave police three days after the alleged confrontation, she had been invited to the couple's 29 1/2 Charlotte Street residence last Friday to hang out, but she said she was concerned because of previous run-ins she'd had with Ravenel.

Moser said she arrived about 11 p.m. and relieved the nanny. The couple had not returned. "The victim advised that when they arrived everything was fine for a while," the police report stated.

Moser said she was outside speaking with Dennis when Ravenel came out of the house with the 7-month-old "and yelled to Kathryn that she needed to take care of the sleeping child."

According to the police report, Ravenel walked with the child in his arms in the dark and slipped and fell in the pool with her. The baby was pulled out of the pool by Ravenel and handed to Dennis. At that point Moser began filming the events with her cellphone "because she felt that more was about to transpire," the incident report states.

Moser was walking behind Ravenel into the house when he swung the door hard as if to close it. The door reportedly bounced off Moser's knee. He went to shut the door again and it struck Moser on the inside of her right arm "due to the fact that her hand was raised because she was videoing the episode."

Moser said she was hit so hard by the door that she fell back. After Ravenel went upstairs, Moser sat down to gather her thoughts "and to make sure that the baby and Kathryn were fine before she left."

Ravenel, according to the police, then "returned naked and began screaming (expletive) get your stuff and get out" while giving her back her belongings.

Moser left and told police she sought medical treatment the next day. There were no broken bones but during her Oct. 20 interview the officer observed "bruising to the inside of the victim's right arm." Photographs of the injury were also taken.

Ravenel's campaign to unseat Republican U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham has been rocky so far. Earlier this month he was named in a Lexington County Sheriff Department's report for allegedly sending harassing text messages to blogger and political consultant Will Folks, operator of the FITS News website.

Also this election season Ravenel, 52, the former S.C. state treasurer who lost his office in 2007 due to a federal cocaine conviction, had expressed public dissatisfaction with the producers of his "Southern Charm" reality TV show for sending camera crews to a recent SC ETV debate with the Democratic Senate candidate Brad Hutto. Ravenel said he was trying to downplay the narrative that he was not a serious candidate. Graham has refused to debate Ravenel.

His campaign fundraising has also been slow. He has been able to raise only $35,680 in individual contributions from donors, while loaning himself $427,000, according to his latest Sept. 30 filing with the Federal Election Commission.

Reach Schuyler Kropf at 937-5551.