Three men have been charged with assault following a brawl that broke out on a dock in Alabama and went viral.
One of the three men charged was in custody and the other two were set to turn themselves in on Tuesday, said Montgomery Police Chief Darryl J. Albert, who added that “more charges are likely.”
Police are still seeking a man seen hitting multiple people with a folding chair during the brawl, which happened in Montgomery’s Riverfront Park on Saturday night and saw 13 people detained in the aftermath, authorities said at a Tuesday press conference.
Albert said the brawl began when a co-captain of an Alabama River cruise ship, the Harriott II, tried to dock at its designated spot but was blocked by a private boat.
“The captain of the Harriott remained away from the dock for nearly 40 to 45 minutes as (he) attempted to contact the operators of the private boat via PA system,” Albert said. “They were only responded to (with) what I’ve seen, gestures, curse words and taunting.”
A different boat picked up the co-captain, identified as Damien Pickett, and brought him to the pier so he could try to talk to the owners of the private boat to allow Harriott to dock and its 227 passengers to disembark, Albert said.
Alabama fight:4 warrants issued after brawl breaks out at Riverfront Park in Montgomery
Fight ensues at Riverfront Park
Several people associated with the private boat attacked Pickett after they exchanged words for several minutes, Albert said.
That’s when passengers of the Harriott II came to the Pickett’s defense. Police arrived to the scene shortly afterward and detained 13 people, Albert said.
All those detained were taken to police headquarters for questioning and interviews, which lasted several hours. Everyone was released pending the investigation.
A 16-year-old boy who works on the boat that took Pickett to the dock also was hit during the fight, Albert said.
“His mother, actually, went and signed warrants on one of those individuals,” he added.