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Def Leppard’s one-armed drummer Rick Allen was attacked Monday by an apparent stranger outside the Four Seasons Hotel in Fort Lauderdale Beach, FL, with police saying Allen suffered a head injury after a teenager attacked the unsuspecting drummer, knocking him backward onto the floor.
Max Edward Hartley, 19, an Ohio resident visiting Florida who was reportedly on spring break, was arrested and charged with two counts of battery use, four counts of criminal mischief and assaulting an elderly or disabled adult.
According to a Fort Lauderdale police report, 59-year-old Allen was smoking a cigarette outside the hotel when Hartley, who had been hiding behind a pole, attacked Allen “at full throttle” and knocked him backward onto the floor. . Allen hit his head on the pavement during the fall.
Police say a woman came out of the hotel to help Allen after witnessing the incident and was also knocked to the ground by Hartley, who then grabbed the woman by the hair and dragged her back into the hotel. Hartley was arrested after running to another nearby hotel, where he allegedly damaged some cars in a parking garage. After the charges were filed, he posted bail and was released.
According to WSVN-TV in Fort Lauderdale, Allen has issued an affidavit to police telling them he wants to prosecute.
Information about Allen’s condition has not been released. Neither he nor the band has yet commented on the incident.
Def Leppard was in Florida for a March 12 concert with Mötley Crüe at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.
Allen lost his arm due to a car accident in 1984. He subsequently taught himself how to play the drums again using just his right arm and both feet, using a custom kit, and has remained Def Leppard’s drummer ever since. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band has sold more than 35.5 million albums in the US alone, including two Diamond certified 10 million sellers in Pyromania (1983) and Hysteria (1987).