Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen was violently attacked outside the Four Seasons hotel in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, over the weekend. A 19-year-old man named Max Edward Hartley was arrested for the incident.
According to a police report obtained by The Daily Mail, Allen was outside smoking a cigarette when Hartley allegedly emerged from behind a pillar and rushed at the drummer, knocking the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer down. As a result of the assault, Allen apparently hit his head on the ground, causing injury.
A woman attempted to help Allen, but was repeatedly punched by Hartley. When she tried to escape back into the hotel, Hartley dragged her back outside by the hair. Hartley fled but was eventually arrested as he was breaking car windows nearby the hotel.
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Allen famously lost his arm in a 1984 car accident, but persevered to continue playing with Def Leppard. Hartley was charged with two counts of battery, four counts of criminal mischief, and abusing an “elderly or disabled adult.”
The drummer told police in a sworn statement that he wanted Hartley prosecuted.
On Tuesday (March 14th), Hartley was bailed out of Broward County Jail, and was asked by a local TV reporter if he was a Def Leppard fan, according to 7 News Miami. Hartley turned away and did not give an answer.
Both The Daily Mail and 7 News Miami reached out to Def Leppard’s media team for comment, but have yet to get a response.
Def Leppard were in town to play a show with Mötley Crüe at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino. The two bands are set to embark on a UK/European tour in May and June, before returning to the States for a run of summer shows with special guest Alice Cooper (tickets available here).
