The person who tackled comic Dave Chappelle onstage two years in the past has sued the Hollywood Bowl and its safety workforce, alleging negligent safety and battery.
Isaiah Lee, who pleaded deny game to fees in the case of the 2022 incident and was once sentenced to prison on account of it, alleged in a civil lawsuit that safety guards hired on the venue for the “Dave Chappelle and Friends” tournament pulled Lee off of Chappelle and started beating him ruthlessly, spitting on him and dislocating his arm deliberately.
In a grievance filed in Los Angeles County Stunning Courtroom on Friday — precisely two years next the incident — the 25-year-old, who identifies as bisexual and has skilled homelessness, stated he tackled Chappelle next “The Dreamer” megastar “unleashed a barrage of homophobic and transphobic jokes” and joked about homelessness right through the inaugural Netflix Is a Funny story comedy competition. The grievance, acquired Monday by way of The Occasions, stated Lee “became upset by the discriminatory nature of the comedian’s jokes and rushed the stage in protest as the show ended.”
“Instead of intervening to protect Lee, [the defendants] allowed members of the comedian’s entourage, encouraged by the comedian, to beat Lee,” the lawsuit stated. The grievance additionally stated {that a} knife fell out of Lee’s patch smartly next the altercation was once underway and that its presence “did not justify the force” worn in opposition to him.
Jonathan D. Evans, Lee’s lawyer, argued that the Hollywood Bowl and the unidentified “Doe” safety firms have been acutely aware of Chappelle’s historical past of constructing offensive jokes that focus on the LGBTQ+ nation, in addition to his “propensity for making discriminatory remarks,” however “took no measures to prevent or mitigate the potential harm caused by such offensive material.” The firebrand comedian, who isn’t indexed as a defendant in Lee’s lawsuit, made headlines for months forward of the incident on account of jokes he made in his 2021 Netflix particular “The Closer,” which led to an worker walkout for the streaming gigantic and large grievance of Chappelle’s paintings.
“We cannot comment on ongoing legal matters,” a spokesperson for the Hollywood Bowl stated Monday in a commentary to The Occasions. “However, the safety and security of our audience and artists are of the utmost importance to the Hollywood Bowl. Security procedures are updated regularly to provide the safest possible environment for those who attend and perform at the Bowl.”
A spokesperson for Chappelle didn’t instantly reply Monday to The Occasions’ request for remark.
Any corporate the Bowl would possibly word of honour with for safety may just now not be contacted for remark because of shortage of identity.
Lee’s assault passed off most effective months next Will Smith slapped comic Chris Rock on are living tv on the 94th Academy Awards, and violence attaining onstage was once one of the problems relating to are living performers on the month.
In step with earlier reporting, Lee emerged from the Bowl target audience on Might 3, 2022, and looked as if it would decrease his head and fee Chappelle, knocking the Emmy-winning actor backward. Lee later fled to the again of the level, the place he was once apprehended by way of safety and sustained minor accidents. Chappelle, who was once now not harm, upcoming made quips about Lee and the incident and the way the occasions performed out.
Lee pleaded deny game to at least one fee of misdemeanor battery and one fee of getting into a limited segment right through a are living tournament and was once sentenced in December 2022 to almost 9 months in county prison. He finished his sentence and is recently in a transitional residing facility, his lawyer showed Monday to The Occasions.
Within the lawsuit, Evans argued that the safety corporate hired by way of the Bowl “had a duty to exercise due care” within the efficiency of its safety products and services and did not somewhat carry out them, to effect the wounds suffered by way of Lee.
Rather of detaining or arresting Lee the usage of a cheap quantity of pressure or intervening to offer protection to him from the thrashing, the safety corporate “allowed members of the comedian’s entourage, encouraged by the comedian, to beat Lee senselessly,” the grievance stated. Workers of the safety corporate “joined in the beating” and “took no action to prevent it the assault,” the report stated.
“As a direct and proximate result of the above-mentioned conduct of and omissions by Defendants … [Lee] was placed in great fear for his physical well being, and has suffered and continues to suffer extreme mental and physical pain, suffering, anguish, fright, nervousness, anxiety, grief, shock, humiliation, indignity, embarrassment, and apprehension, all to his damage in a sum to be determined at trial,” the grievance stated.
The submitting additionally stated that Lee “was placed in great fear for his physical well being, suffered and continues to suffer extreme mental and physical pain, anxiety, humiliation and apprehension, among other issues. He has since experienced a significant loss of enjoyment of life and his injuries required immediate surgery, it said, and he cannot fully use his shoulder or engage in certain physical activities that he regularly did before the incident.
Lee is seeking a judgment against the defendants in a jury trial, as well an unspecified amount in damages, coverage of his medical and related expenses, legal fees and further relief, the suit said.
“He’s not after a set dollar amount. He just wants the security company or whoever else was beating him, twisting his arm out of socket, and spitting on him to answer for going overboard,” Evans stated Monday in an electronic mail to The Occasions. “He should have been detained, and taken into custody. That’s it. What the security guards did to him and allowed others to do him goes beyond the scope of what’s acceptable.”
