DA moves to drop charges against country star arrested after Tennessee bar incident

Charges against a country star who allegedly assaulted an officer were dropped after footage of the bar incident tempered the story.

On Monday night in Nashville, Tenn., 38-year-old country music star Chris Young was confronted by Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission officers who arrested him after he tried to stop them from leaving the Dawg House Saloon establishment on Demonbreun Street. .

Brought in after 10pm and charged with disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and assaulting an officer, the “Gettin' You Home (The Black Dress Song)” singer was released hours later on a $2,500 bond dollars, and the charges were dismissed on Friday. after the video seemed unsympathetic to TABC agent Joseph Phillips' report.

“Regarding the Chris Young incident: After a review of all the evidence in this case, the District Attorney's Office has determined that these charges will be dismissed,” Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk said Friday in a statement

pic.twitter.com/yooihAws71

— District Attorney (@DavidsonCoDA) January 27, 2024

As it happened, the musician and several associates had met the officers on the tin roof as they made their rounds before following them to the Dawg house. It was there that Phillips had said in an affidavit that Young hit him as he tried to leave the routine compliance check, prompting the officer to push him to create distance.

“Once this happened most of the patrons in the bar got up and got between the TABC officers and Mr. Young and started yelling and screaming,” Phillips wrote. “As all officers attempted to exit the bar, several individuals who were with Mr. Young began following the officers and making the incident hostile.”

However, footage from inside the lounge showing various angles of the incident, which did not include dialogue audio, appeared to show an aggressive response to a casual move by Young who was forced back into the corner of the bar by fall to the ground .

WATCH: 4 different angles of the bar where Chris Young was arrested Monday night. pic.twitter.com/lY4Q6GDKBR

— Taste of Country (@TasteOfCountry) January 25, 2024

“What happened to my client Chris Young at a bar in Nashville on Monday night was wrong and he should never have been arrested and charged in the first place,” attorney William Ramsey said in an initial statement to the media . “In light of the video evidence, Tennessee [Alcoholic Beverage Commission] I need to drop the charges and apologize for the physical, emotional and professional harm caused to my client.”

After getting back to his feet, the musician, who had bloodshot eyes and slurred speech, according to court documents, struggled to keep his distance from officers as others were seen interceding in the incident

After Funk's decision, Ramsey issued a new statement saying, “Mr. Young and I are pleased with the prosecutor's decision to clear him of the charges and of any wrongdoing.”

In its own statement, TABC expressed, “We respect General Funk's decision to drop the charges against Mr. Young. All law enforcement and first responders deserve to be safe while on duty. For the For your safety and theirs, we ask the public not to make physical contact or interfere with officers while they are working.”

Reactions to the firing were overwhelmingly favorable to Young and demanded accountability for the officers who had arrested the musician.

Any recycling of the agents who instigated this and then lied?

— Wade Long (@menotallofyou) January 27, 2024

So happy the charges were dropped, they have to charge the officer!

— Celeste Jaworski (@CelesteJaworski) January 27, 2024

What about the police officer?

— David Bouquillon (@DBouquillon13) January 27, 2024

Now we see the prosecutor accuse the officer of falsifying a report and false arrest.

— Kris L. (@ttiger2004) January 27, 2024

Staff writer

A native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College, where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and seeker of truth, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and dog, and when he's not researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel ·the.

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