Charges from an ugly bar scene skirmish and arrest involving TV and film star Eric Mabius in Fernandina Beach have been dropped, according to the Nassau County Clerk of Court’s Office.
Mabius, now 54, had been charged Feb. 20 with battery and resisting law enforcement without violence.
“After reviewing the evidence in the above-styled case, the undersigned assistant state attorney declines to prosecute this defendant for these charges,” Assistant State Attorney Melissa Bailey Coll wrote in the May 6 disposition notice.
The clerk’s office advised that the Florida Department of Law Enforcement has otherwise sealed the case, so further details were not available.
However, the case against co-defendant Jennifer Moreno-Torres, 40 of Fernandina Beach, remains active. Court records show her next pre-trial hearing is tentatively scheduled for May 21 on charges of battery, obstructing or opposing a police officer without violence and disorderly intoxication.
Why did Eric Mabius get arrested?
Authorities were called about 2 a.m. to The Goat Irish-themed bar on Lofton Square Court where Mabius and Moreno-Torres were said to be intoxicated and creating a disturbance. A witness said the woman “was continuously being disrespectful to everyone at the bar,” according to the arrest report.
“Witnesses stated that after the bartender asked the female to leave multiple times, both Mabius and the woman began spitting on several patrons,” the Sheriff’s Office said. “The situation escalated when Mabius allegedly pushed a female victim, knocking her to the ground and pulling out ‘fistfuls’ of her hair.”
Moreno-Torres started to push the victim when she told her to leave, and that’s when Mabius slung both of them to the ground and bystanders intervened, according to a witness in the arrest report.
When deputies arrived, they said Mabius became increasingly belligerent outside and would not comply with instructions to stay seated during the investigation. When he attempted to walk behind a deputy, several escorted him back to a bench and placed him under arrest, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
While inside the bar, the woman just “laid on the ground and refused to listen and or speak” with deputies, the report said. Two deputies had to pick her up and carry her outside where she continued to resist. The victims declined to press charges, but they were still taken to jail.
The relationship between Mabius and Moreno-Torres wasn’t listed in the report. Mabius’ booking photo shows him with some bruising around his eyes.
“This type of behavior will not be tolerated in our community, regardless of celebrity status,” Sheriff Bill Leeper said at the time.
Mabius had apparently been staying at a rental in Fernandina. He is known for movies such as “Cruel Intentions,” “The Crow: Salvation” and “Resident Evil,” TV shows “The L Word” and “Ugly Betty” and several Hallmark movies.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: ‘Ugly Betty’ actor Eric Mabius gets ugly arrest charges dropped in Nassau County
Reporting by Scott Butler, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union / Florida Times-Union
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