Sir Rod Stewart assault trial cancelled and plea deal hearing set
12 September 2021, 19:14
The rocker and his son were accused of attacking a security guard at a luxury hotel in Florida.
The trial of veteran rock star Sir Rod Stewart and his son Sean has been cancelled and a hearing scheduled for next month to discuss a plea deal.
The case relates to charges stemming from a New Year’s Eve altercation with a hotel security guard nearly two years ago.
Florida court records show that a hearing with Judge August Bonavita has been set for October 22 regarding a plea agreement to close the case without the pair being required to appear in court.
The trial had been scheduled to start on Tuesday but was cancelled on Thursday.
If convicted, the Stewarts were facing a year in jail, or probation and a 1,000 US dollars (£723) fine. The terms of the agreement were not clear.
The Stewarts’ assault charges have taken longer than usual to resolve because of the pandemic and settlement negotiations.
The London-born singer of ’70s hits including Da Ya Think I’m Sexy? and Maggie May is a member of the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame and was knighted by the Queen in 2016.
Sir Rod and his son are accused of pushing and shoving security guard Jessie Dixon at the luxury The Breakers Hotel on December 31 2019 after he refused to let them into a New Year’s Eve party.
Mr Dixon told Palm Beach police officers that the Stewarts’ group was at the check-in table for a private party and were not authorised to attend, a police report said.
Mr Dixon, then 33, said the group became loud and began causing a scene. The security guard told investigators he had put his hand on Sean’s chest and told him to back up and make space. That was when the rock star’s son had got “nose to nose” with Mr Dixon.
Sean, now 41, then shoved Mr Dixon backwards. Sir Rod, now 76, punched Mr Dixon in his “left rib cage area” with a closed fist, prosecutors allege.
Sean told investigators he became agitated when they were not able to attend the event “due to Dixon’s interaction with him and his family”.
Two Breakers employees who were working at the private event told police they saw Sean push Mr Dixon and Sir Rod punch the guard.
The arresting officer said he had viewed security footage at the hotel and determined that the Stewarts were the “primary aggressors”.
