Hank Williams III Named In Assault Lawsuit, But Was He Even There?
This story has been updated (see below).
Hank Williams III, the grandson of Hank Williams and the son of Hank Williams Jr., has been named as one of the principal defendants in a lawsuit by a concertgoer who is claiming he was assaulted by the crowd at a concert for the heavy metal band Superjoint, formerly known as Superjoint Ritual. The fan claims the band incited the crowd to assault him. However, all indications are that Hank3 has not been a member of Superjoint Ritual for over 13 years, wasn’t on the premises at the time the alleged assault occurred, and if he was, wasn’t a principal part of the band at the time.
In a lawsuit filed on May 4th, 2017 by David Edwards Sr. in Hamilton County Court in Ohio, the plaintiff claims that at a show at Bogart’s on July 14, 2015 in Clifton, Ohio (a suburb of Cincinnati), he was attacked by the crowd when Superjoint, including lead singer Phil Anselmo and Hank Williams III, incited the crowd to assault him after he complained the band was talking too much. The lawsuit claims:
During the concert, Plaintiff requested Superjoint to stop talking and sing, and otherwise had dialogue with Superjoint; apparently in response to Plaintiff’s request/dialogue, Superjoint, by and through Anselmo and Williams, incited the crowd to violence, eventually resulting in Plaintiff being assaulted by numerous unidentified concertgoers, causing Plaintiff serious personal injury.
However every indication is that Hank Williams III was not at the Bogart’s show, isn’t touring with Superjoint, wasn’t touring with Superjoint at the time, and had nothing to do with the incident, while Superjoint’s less famous members are not being named in the lawsuit at all, nor are any of the concertgoers who perpetrated the alleged assault. This important detail is being left out of news reports on the lawsuit.
Superjoint Ritual, also known just as Superjoint, is a heavy metal band initially formed by former Pantera lead singer Phil Anselmo in 1993. For a short period between 2002 and 2004, Hank3 played bass in the band during a hiatus in his country music career. In 2004, Superjoint Ritual disbanded for a decade, eventually reforming in 2014 with bass guitarist Steven Taylor taking Hank 3’s spot. Due to legal reasons, the band goes under the abbreviated name of Superjoint currently.
Significant media coverage surrounded the re-emergence of Superjoint and the release of reunion tour dates via promoter LiveNation, and none of the reports mention Hank Williams III as part of the band. In fact, some reports go out of their way to indicate Williams would not be part of the new band. Hank3 has also said himself he would not be part of the new Superjoint lineup. Furthermore, there are no reports of Hank3 being at the show at Bogart’s, no reviews placing him at the show, no photos of him at the show posted to Instagram or elsewhere, no chatter on Twitter or Facebook of any appearance, and no videos of Hank3 performing with Superjoint that night, or being in attendance.
In fact video of the July 14, 2015 show at Bogart’s clearly shows that current bass player Steven Taylor is on stage, not Hank3. Video from shows in the days leading up to, and days right after the Bogart’s shows also do not show Hank Williams III as a current participant in Superjoint. The show rundown from setlist.fm makes no indication of a Hank3 guest appearance. Williams also made no public indication that he was touring with Superjoint, or that he made any appearance at the show, or was in the crowd of the 2015 Bogart’s show. Recently, Hank3 has been making no public appearances or performing. So if he had made a public appearance or performed at Bogart’s, that in itself would be newsworthy.
The lawsuit from David Edwards Sr., which also names Bogart’s, LiveNation, House of Blues, and security company Tenable Protective Services in the court action, goes on to say:
As a direct and proximate result of the negligence … Plaintiff received medical care and will in the future receive medical care as a result of his injuries … and will suffer in the future, physical and mental pain and suffering, permanent impairment and loss of enjoyment of life as a result of his injuries … has incurred and will in the future incur, medical expenses for related care and treatment for his injuries.
The lawsuit claims damages exceed $25,000, and is asking a total of $75,000 in actual and punitive damages.
Saving Country Music attempted to reach out to management of Phil Anselmo, Hank Williams III, Plaintiff’s lawyer Terrence M. Garrigan for clarification, and communication was not immediately returned.
According to Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas clerk Rick Hoffman, the defendants were served in the lawsuit on May 4th, but only Bogart’s has responded to the lawsuit so far. Anselmo and Williams were served via LiveNation. The defendants have 28 days to respond to the lawsuit. The case is set for a management conference on July 10th.
READ: Where The Hell Has Hank3 Been?
Strangely, the lawsuit also misspells the names of both Phil Anselmo, and Hank3. Anselmo’s full legal name is Philip Hansen Anselmo, but he is named in the lawsuit as “Phil Anseline” in the list of defendants (though it’s spelled correctly later). Williams’ full legal name is Shelton Hank Williams, but he is named in the lawsuit by his stage name, “Hank Williams III.”
Questions remain why Hank Williams III would be named in this lawsuit, especially if he wasn’t there. Did Hank3 make an appearance and incite the crowd, even though there is no record or indication of such? Or is the Plaintiff and his lawyer using high-profile names to draw attention to the lawsuit?
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UPDATE 5-24-17 8:42 CDT: According to Hank3’s management, Hank Williams III was not at Bogart’s in Ohio on July 14, 2015, he was at home. Management confirmed that he has not performed since 2014, and was not performing with Superjoint at the time.
Rastus
May 24, 2017 @ 9:50 am
Like any good lawyer, he knows to go after the party with the deep pockets…whether they were actually responsible or not!
Tom
May 24, 2017 @ 11:27 am
When they figure out that III is completely out of the loop for a share of the Hank Williams estate and is pretty much flat broke they’ll drop his name from the suit like a hot potato.
bwh
May 24, 2017 @ 11:41 am
But only $100k? Not a big cash grab.
Maybe I’ve been jaded by the greedy lawsuits of the last decade, but $100k seems light.
jtrpdx
May 24, 2017 @ 10:21 am
Seems ridiculous. On a related note, I saw Superjoint Ritual twice in the early 2000’s when Hank was in the band……what great shows. Those first two Superjoint Ritual albums were great.
Also, saw Marty Stuart last night. Unbelievably amazing show, and would highly recommend that people go check him out on this tour. What a talented group of guys. Cousin Kenny also hung out for about an hour with a group of 5 of us at the bar afterwards. Super down to earth guy, and had some great stories!
Wheeler Walker Sr.
May 24, 2017 @ 11:07 am
I saw Marty on Saturday night. Totally concur. Great show from a real pro!
Tim from GA
May 24, 2017 @ 5:40 pm
Wheeler Walker Sr? Ha! Love that name. Your son “ole Wheeler” is making quite a name for himself. You must be a proud father. Lol
Wheeler Walker Sr.
May 24, 2017 @ 6:54 pm
Hell yeah! Love me some Wheeler. He uses pedal steel as well as anybody.
Bertox
May 24, 2017 @ 10:22 am
Studley, was that you in the crowd yelling, “Shut up and play some Luke Bryan?”
Joecephus
May 24, 2017 @ 10:25 am
This sounds like a cashgrab from an idiot & a lawyer with dollar signs in his eyes.
III hasn’t been part of Superjoint in years, and may be a part of the reason the name changed after he left.)
He should counter she for defamation.
Diesel Tech
May 25, 2017 @ 5:57 am
The name change was due to a dispute between Phil and the original drummer. At what time It was very public.
I read an interview last year where Jimmy was talking why Hank 3 won’t be a part of the band this time. It was all due to 3’s big move.
Anyone remember Arson Anthem the Hardcore punk group that 3, Phil, Jimmy and Mike Williams were in! Also a great band!
Wheeler Walker Sr.
May 24, 2017 @ 10:25 am
Going after some of that pecan tree estate inheritance Hank got from June and her husband.
Bill
May 24, 2017 @ 10:28 am
The optimist in me says at least this would be Hank III making an appearance somewhere.
stinks
May 24, 2017 @ 12:11 pm
Mental pain and suffering, permanent impairment of enjoyment of life? Do I have a case against country radio?
Bertox
May 24, 2017 @ 12:14 pm
You win the internet today
Travis
May 24, 2017 @ 12:15 pm
I’ve seen Superjoint a couple times but that must have been before Hank3s time. I don’t recall when but it had to be around the end of high school or shortly thereafter (1999-2000). I sure as hell wouldn’t of known who Hank3 was then anyway. I’ve also seen Down a handful of times, as recently as about 2011 (shit, i guess that isn’t that recent). I remember Phil talking a ton and trying to heavily promote one of the opening bands. I looked them up afterwards and of course they were on Phil’s label. He turned half that concert into an advertisement for that band. I could see somebody getting irritated if that’s typical but I still enjoyed the show!
jtrpdx
May 24, 2017 @ 2:48 pm
Hank3 was the bassist for the Use Once and Destroy and A Lethal Dose of American Hatred albums and subsequent tours. So, it likely was him. It wasn’t something that they promoted that heavily, and he was pretty unassuming.
Brian
May 24, 2017 @ 12:23 pm
Sure seems like a lot of controversy surrounding Live Nation this year…
Erica
May 24, 2017 @ 1:14 pm
Is there an article on the initial incident itself? I’m curious if any arrests and/or charges of drunk and disorderly conduct were made that night, especially if the plaintiff was so injured that he requires future medical care.
I want to give him benefit of the doubt, but with the way this lawsuit is being handed out, all signs are pointing to “cash grab”.
Trigger
May 24, 2017 @ 1:29 pm
I was unable to find any articles about the initial assault. There may be a police report if authorities were called, but it wasn’t mentioned in the lawsuit. Perhaps if this situation goes farther, we’ll go digging for it.
If this guy got assaulted, that’s not cool. Even if he was mouthing off, get security to remove him. I know for a fact that Hank3 will stop an entire show down if he sees a fight or someone getting hurt, no matter what the reason. Naming him in a lawsuit like this when he very likely wasn’t there to either try to run up the score or create negative publicity around the situation so the parties will settle, is pretty inexcusable. If the guy got assaulted, then okay, hold the responsible parties accountable. But don’t go dragging folks into it that don’t belong. And it may not be the Plaintiff’s fault. Like others have said, lawyers look to name anyone they can in a lawsuit that may have deep pockets. Adding a famous name makes it a big story.
hoptowntiger94
May 24, 2017 @ 1:39 pm
The lawyer copied and pasted from Superjoint wiki site.
seak05
May 24, 2017 @ 5:34 pm
This is probably accurate. He probably meant the bass player, and saw something that said Hank was the bass player, and therefore ID’d Hank.
Benny Lee
May 24, 2017 @ 5:24 pm
Wait, Hank3 is still out there somewhere?
Trigger
May 24, 2017 @ 6:49 pm
The story was just updated. Just heard from Hank3’s manager/lawyer who confirms he was at home on the night in question.
TheRealPhilAnseline
May 24, 2017 @ 7:38 pm
Pffftttt. Douche-bag much?
http://www.kentucky.com/news/politics-government/article134731544.html
Travis
May 25, 2017 @ 6:14 am
Ha! That guy reminds me of a friend of mine. I wouldn’t call him a douche bag, at least from that small clip. Like most, it seems like he has good intentions (talking about unity, jobs, etc.) but is a bit misinformed. Among other things he said, you couldn’t get me to believe for a second that Trump cares about the disabled.