UPDATE: An arrest has been made in connection to the battery that occurred at Chaser’s Bar & Grill early this morning. Sean D. Shell (29) was located this evening and arrested for felony battery. The initial altercation began after a confrontation between the victim and a bartender about an unpaid tab. After the victim made crude comments to the bartender and began to advance toward her, Chaser’s Bar & Grill security stepped in. Instead of escorting the victim outside in a sensible manner, security struck, kicked and kneeled on the victim several times, while dragging him, stopping on occasion, on the way out of the bar.
While all of this was occurring, an off-duty EPD officer that was working for Chaser’s Bar & Grill was across the street assisting a citizen near First Federal Bank. This has been confirmed by witness statements and security footage. The officer was unaware the incident was occurring, or had occurred, until he returned to Chaser’s Bar & Grill and noticed the victim on the sidewalk. The officer and the victim spoke about what occurred and the victim stated he would consult with his lawyer instead of pressing charges with the officer; despite this, the officer gave the victim a case number that would document the incident. The victim then chose to leave on his own accord, declining the officer asking if he wanted an ambulance. The officer attempted to look at the main security footage at that time and was unable to, due to on-site staff not having the password. However, he was able to see the incident from a secondary camera the business had; it showed the incident at a distance, was grainy and sometimes blocked by a partition that didn’t show the incident in its entirety. A report was completed, and detectives began following up this morning. Chaser’s ownership has been fully cooperative in this investigation, allowing detectives to review all security footage that they have of the incident during the follow-up.
Shell is currently being booked in at the Vanderburgh County Confinement Center for the felony charge of ‘Battery – Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury’. An arrest warrant has been issued for the second security guard and offender, Johnathan P. Turner (41). If any further updates become available during the investigation that information will be shared with the public.
The Evansville Police Department has been made aware of numerous videos circulating on social media showing an incident that occurred at Chaser’s Bar at 2131 W Franklin St. The videos show a patron involved in a physical altercation with security staff. The Evansville Police Department has reviewed cell phone footage, as well as security footage, and we can confirm that the officer who was working at the business was not present during the altercation. The officer was outside of the building dealing with a separate issue. This officer did not witness the incident and was not in a position to intervene
