DALLAS (WBAP/KLIF) – Dallas Police filed additional charges Thursday against a man seen on camera repeatedly punching a woman outside a Deep Ellum bar last week.
Austin Shuffield is now also charged with Unlawfully Carrying a Weapon. The Dallas Police Department has also sent a an Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon charge, which is a 2nd degree felony, against Shuffield to the District Attorney for presentation to a Grand Jury.
The night of the incident Shuffield was charged with Public Intoxication, Interfering with an Emergency Call and Assault. The new charges have been forwarded to the Dallas County District Attorney’s office.
The initial charges brought outrage from North Texas activists who demanded Shuffield be charged with a hate crime. The victim’s lawyer, Lee Merritt, released a statement following the announcement of the new charges against Shuffield. The full statement is below:
We are pleased to learn about the additional felony charges against #AustinShuffield referred to the Dallas County District Attorney’s office by the DPD detectives. Ms. Lee will fully cooperate with DA John Creuzot who has indicated he would like to interview her directly in order to ensure a thorough presentation to the Grand Jury. We believe that additional details from the DA investigation will warrant hate crime enhancements as well. It is unfortunate that the initial charging officer failed to file any felony charges against Austin Shuffield despite reviewing video evidence, independent witness statements, securing a firearm and receiving the victim statement. However, we are grateful that after significant community backlash and protest— more serious charges were perused. The delay however has allowed a dangerous assailant to continue to roam freely among the public and had caused Ms. Lee a great deal of unrest.
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