*Footage of a white Dallas bartender assaulting a Black woman during an argument in Deep Ellum has gone viral, and now the victim has hired a famed civil rights attorney to take legal action.
White supremacist Austin Shuffield, 30, has been charged with assault causing bodily injury and interference with an emergency call, according to jail records.
According to dallasnews.com, the unidentified 24-year-old woman told police that she had been driving the wrong way down the street and had stopped. That’s when Shuffield got out of his truck to ask her to move because she was blocking the parking lot exit, police said.
When the woman moved her vehicle into the parking lot, Shuffield got out of his vehicle, approached her and attempted to take pictures of her license plates, according to the warrant.
The two then began to argue and it quickly turned physical when he slapped her phone out of her hand as she was calling 911. He then pistol whipped her and the violent scene was captured by a bystander.
Warning: The following video contains graphic content.
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Shuffield told police he was acting in self-defense. He was booked into the Dallas County Jail Thursday night and posted a $2,000 bond the next day.
The woman has hired civil rights attorney Lee Merritt. He issued a statement Friday saying Shuffield should face felony assault and hate-crime charges because he hurled racial slurs at his client before the attack.
“Our office is speaking with the Dallas Police Department and the Dallas County District Attorney’s office to ensure all appropriate charges are pursued including felony assault, firearm and hate-crime related charges,” Merritt said in a written statement.
Dominique Alexander, founder of Next Generation Action Network, has called for a protest Saturday in Deep Ellum if Shuffield’s charges are not upgraded to include a hate crime or aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
“We are demanding that District Attorney John Creuzot charges Mr. Shuffield with a hate crime and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon,” Alexander said. “Those are both felonies. Those charges are adequate with what we saw.”
Police said they could smell alcohol while speaking to Shuffield.
Video of the incident obtained by KTVT-TV (Channel 11) shows him holding a gun as he talks to the woman. After he knocks her phone away, Shuffield is then seen punching her at least five times in what appears to be her face or upper body.
A video shot by a witness was shown to police, which led his arrest.
The victim remains hospitalized and is recovering from injuries including a possible post-concussion syndrome and cranial swelling, the report states, said Merritt.
Braxton Martin, the owner of High and Tight Barbershop where Shuffield worked as a bartender, told KTVT-TV that what happened in the video was “horrific,” he said.
“We have finally [spoken] with police representatives and have terminated this employee,” High and Tight said Thursday on Facebook. “We do not stand behind the actions that took place and hope that the full weight of the law comes down on this incident.”
Shuffield has since been fired.
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