Black Alabama boat captain, in middle of wild brawl caught in viral video, now charged with assault

[Nevilledog]

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/nbcblk/black-alabama-boat-captain-middle-wild-brawl-caught-viral-video-now-ch-rcna124463

The Black boat captain who was attacked by white boaters in a wild dockside brawl captured in viral footage will now be charged in connection with the Alabama melee, officials said Thursday.

Dameion Pickett, whom police have identified as co-captain of the Harriott II riverboat, was charged with third-degree assault and ordered to appear before a judge on Nov. 21, a Montgomery court clerk said.

Footage showed Pickett appearing to argue with boaters after asking them to make way for his craft on Aug. 5.

A shirtless white man is then seen forcefully shoving Pickett in the chest before taking a swing at the captain's face, touching off the wild melee. Several other shirtless white men surrounded Pickett and joined the fracas.

*snip*


This is just wrong

[cachukis]

1. Wow.

[marble falls]

2. This is Alabama, it was inevidable. Somebody knows a judge.

[Ms. Toad]

12. Nope.

Private citizens in Alabama can file charges directly, in some circumstances. In this case, a member of the mob did so.

[3Hotdogs]

13. Some people gotta know their place.

.

[yardwork]

24. That is exactly what this is about.

[TheRealNorth]

3. You have a right to self-defense....

Unless you are a POC defending yourself from a white guy.

[Maru Kitteh]

8. That would be mob. As in "Unless you are a POC defending yourself from a white mob."

See also: "Right to bear arms" and "POC."

[a kennedy]

4. This just absolutely wrong. 🤬 🤬 🤬

[ms liberty]

5. mr liberty told me about this, and that DL Hughley has offered to pay the legal bills.

He follows him on social media. DL is very political.

[Kennah]

7. Do you have a link?

Everything I read says he's charged.

[Kaleva]

9. Here is a link

"Montgomery mayor, police chief: Charges against co-captain in riverfront brawl not filed by city"

https://www.wsfa.com/2023/11/08/cnn-co-captain-charged-montgomery-riverfront-brawl/

[Ms. Toad]

11. That says the charges were not filled by the city.

It doesn't say there are no charges - in fact it expressly acknowledges that charges were filed - just not by the City.

[Kaleva]

18. People seem to be under the impression that the police charged him

[Kennah]

19. This seems poorly presented in the news

A more accurate statement might be that someone has signed a complaint against Dameion Pickett.

I'm not a lawyer, but I thought the way it worked was that someone signs a complaint, then the prosecutor decides whether to bring charges, issue an arrest warrant, and indict the person.

Sounds like a complaint has been signed, but that's it.

[Ms. Toad]

21. Not how it works in Alabama.

Different jurisdictions handle it differently. In Alabama prosecution by private citizens is permitted, including the issuance of an arrest warrant.

[yardwork]

23. I hope this backfires on the brawlers, then.

They may get away with this most of the time in AL, but this time it's national news with a lot of people watching. Don't know if that will help or not.

[Ms. Toad]

28. As someone pointed out above,

There are risks whepron private citizens take the law into their own hands - even when the law provides an opportunity for them to do just that.

[Kaleva]

33. +1

[Incanus]

10. The charges were filed by a member of the mob who attacked Pickett

Zachery Shipman filed the charge, he and his wife attacked Dameion Pickett that day and both have been charged with assault by authorities. Police still consider Mr. Pickett a victim of the mob. Personally I still think members of the mob should be charged with hate crimes.

"The complainant in Pickett’s case was listed as Zachery “Chase” Shipman, who was on the pontoon boat and also faces a third-degree assault charge in connection with the brawl. Pickett is listed as a victim in the charges against the pontoon boat occupants."

https://www.al.com/news/2023/11/montgomery-riverboat-co-captain-charged-with-assault-months-after-brawl.html

[Nevilledog]

17. Charges are not legally started just on a "victim's" request.

A prosecutor has to be the one to make that decision.

[Ms. Toad]

22. Not in Alabama.

Different states have different rules, and Alabama permits prosecution by private citizens.

[Nevilledog]

25. Alabama is weird

Citizen can only start the process, can't make the prosecution happen.

http://www.hooveral.org/253/Obtaining-a-Warrant


Please understand that as a citizen complainant, you are merely initiating criminal prosecution. The City of Hoover is the entity actually prosecuting the case against the defendant. Therefore, you cannot decide the terms of the prosecution. Nor can you request the charges be dropped. Even if you decide you would prefer to not testify, the judge can force your appearance and testimony through a subpoena or warrant.

Also included this because the complainant might have gotten bad advice:

Obtaining an arrest warrant can carry civil risks. If you are considering pressing charges and are concerned about these risks, you should consult with an attorney. The City of Hoover cannot provide legal advice on the matter.

[Ms. Toad]

27. It's not the only one that is weird.

There are at least a dozen states which have some variaiton of private prosecution.

[Brenda]

34. But you're ruining the narrative of hate only on Alabama here.

They don't even mention that three white brawlers have already been charged with assault.

[Ms. Toad]

35. Sorry. I got a thing for facts.

Even if they are inconvenient.

[Brenda]

36. Yeah, Al said it best...

An Inconvenient Truth.

[Emile]

15. Nothing changes in Aladamnbama

[sl8]

16. "Neither the City nor the Montgomery Police Department filed these charges," said the joint statement [...]

Last edited Fri Nov 10, 2023, 01:01 PM - Edit history (1)

From the OP's article:

[...]

In Alabama, a person can make a misdemeanor complaint and have a magistrate issue a summons for an accused person to answer, a police spokesman said.

"Neither the City nor the Montgomery Police Department filed these charges," said the joint statement from the mayor and the police chief. "The Montgomery Police Department’s investigation only lists Mr. Pickett as a victim."

Shipman, though, is being charged with assault in the third degree, according to a court clerk.

[...]

[dalton99a]

20. The "victim" who filed:

[Demovictory9]

26. Yep..wrong. I watched the melee from several points of view

Boat captain was attacked first.

[underpants]

29. My favorite was the flip of the hat

He knew who he was dealing with and what was coming.

[Demovictory9]

32. Lol..yeah

[doc03]

30. Wow the video was seen all over the world. They charge the

victim.

[Chainfire]

31. Yea, Roll Tide...

[GiqueCee]

37. I watched the videos...

... of the blatantly racist attack by a bunch of low-life thugs several times when the event first occurred. There is NO doubt in my mind that he was defending himself in a potentially lethal attack in which punches were coming at him fast and furious from all directions. He was outnumbered, and, as the old saying goes, in the fog of war it can be difficult to differentiate who's an attacker and who isn't. There's also no doubt in my mind that whoever filed those charges is a racist POS just like the boat owners.
Having been in a few physical altercations in my younger days, I can attest that there is NO time to distinguish between attackers and bystanders who insinuated themselves into a rapidly-evolving and dangerous situation. If you're fighting for your life, you go for the throat or the scrote. and fuck the Marquis of Queensbury rules.
Mr. Pickett is obviously the victim of the systemic racism that defines Alabama.