An early-morning argument at a local establishment led to a physical confrontation between a group of people, ultimately requiring police intervention and resulting in the tasing and subsequent arrest of a Clinton man.
Jason ONeal Boykin, 32, of 1928 H.B. Lewis Road, Clinton, was charged with assault on a government official, disorderly conduct and second degree trespass in connection with an incident early Saturday morning. Boykin’s bond was set at $5,000 secured
The incident occurred at Wingz American Grill at 351 Northeast Blvd. in Clinton.
Clinton Police Chief Jay Tilley said officers were at the restaurant at around 2 a.m., closing time for Wingz American Grill, when they saw an argument between two people at the doorway. As officers asked the subjects to leave, a crowd began to gather around the two fighting subjects and the officers.
“It escalated into some pushing and the officers went to break the crowd up,” Tilley said. “The Boykin subject pushed an officer and took a fighting position and the officer used his taser.”
The officer, Sgt. Robert Dalton, handcuffed Boykin and took him into custody. There were no other arrests in the incident.
The restaurant was previously the site of an assault when a 30-year-old Clinton man allegedly pulled a knife on the manager and threatened him. That man was charged with assault with a deadly weapon and trespass in connection with the assault, which occurred at the beginning of September.
Tilley said Clinton Police officers have been called to the restaurant several times before, notably during the early morning hours when the place is closing. “We’ve had some incidents involving unruly crowds,” the police chief noted.
Chris Berendt can be reached at 910-592-8137 ext. 121 or via email at sicrime@heartlandpublications.com.
Unless there is sufficent security these disagreementw will escalate into fights. As a former bar manager and bouncer I can tell you good in house security is worth all the cops coming after in the world.
A good bouncer watches his floor and knows his crowd and can stop 99.9% of the trouble before it starts. Also a rohbust policy on barring individuals that repeatedly cause issues will help tremendously.
Don't let a few bad apples spoil what could be a great place to go for a fun night out. Learn to control your crowds and we'll all be better off