Country singer Chris Young’s lawyer pushed back against his arrest for allegedly assaulting a Tennessee Alcohol and Beverage Control officer who was checking IDs at a Nashville bar, insisting video evidence proves the charges are bogus.
“What happened to my client Chris Young at a bar in Nashville on Monday night was wrong and he never should have been arrested and charged in the first place,” his attorney, Bill Ramsey, said in a statement.
“In light of the video evidence, Tennessee ABC needs to drop the charges and apologize for the physical, emotional and professional harm done towards my client.”
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An arrest affidavit says Young, who was booked on several misdemeanors, had bloodshot eyes and was slurring his words during the Monday night confrontation at the Dawg House that ended with him being marched out in handcuffs.
Young—who recently announced his ninth and biggest studio album—has not yet commented personally on the fracas.
It started at a different bar, Tin Roof, when ABC officers showed up to check identification and licenses. Young offered up his card, but then started questioning the officers and videotaping them, according to the affidavit.
Young and some other patrons followed the officers as they went to the Dawg House next door to perform the same checks, and allegedly got physical as they tried to leave.
“Mr. Young put his hands out to stop me from leaving the bar and stuck [sic] me on the shoulder,” one officer wrote. “I then pushed Mr. Young to create distance since I had no idea who Mr. Young was or what he had.”
Video shared by Young’s legal team shows that when the singer was pushed, he stumbled backward and fell over a table.
That’s when things got ugly, with bar patrons converging on the face-off, yelling and screaming. As an officer tried to speak to Young, he started walking backwards and ignoring orders, the affidavit said.
The footage shows Young get up after his fall and walk backwards with his arms in the air.
After they cuffed Young, some of his friends began following the agents “making the incident hostile,” authorities claimed.
Young was booked on charges of disorderly conduct, assaulting an officer, and resisting arrest. He was released on $2,500 bond, with a Feb. 16 court date.
