Ethnic slur not a prank to those charged in physical altercation

MT. PLEASANT — Two individuals have been criminally charged following a violent altercation in a Mt. Pleasant Jersey Mike’s parking lot that began with an offensive prank and ended with one juvenile receiving medical attention.

According to a criminal complaint filed May 30, Tavis Teager, 18, of Burlington, was charged with assault while displaying a dangerous weapon, an aggravated misdemeanor. Police say Teager initially refused to exit a vehicle after it was located at Meadow Brook Apartments following the incident.

Police responded to the call at 6:16 p.m., initially receiving reports of a possible firearm, although the weapon found was simply a windshield scraper.

“Upon review [of] camera footage from Jersey Mike’s … the victim was then assaulted by three of the vehicle occupants with the defendant joining,” the complaint states. “The defendant went to the vehicle and retrieved what was described as a window scraper and began assaulting the victim … taking multiple swings.”

The juvenile victim sustained facial bruising and a potential concussion.

A second individual, Maciah Miller, 19, of Mt. Pleasant, was charged with disorderly conduct — fighting or violent behavior, a simple misdemeanor, according to a June 5 complaint.

Miller allegedly punched the juvenile after she attempted to spray him with washable paint. Police say Miller had wiped an obscenity — originally written by two teenage girls — off a parked vehicle not belonging to him.

“The defendant and victim engaged in a physical altercation with the defendant having the victim on the ground,” the report states.

Miller later turned over cellphone footage of the fight to investigators and was taken into custody.

The May 29 incident began when two teenage girls used washable paint to write an ethnic slur on the window of a friend’s parked car. Footage of the altercation that followed was later posted to social media, where it drew widespread condemnation and sparked debate. Some described the act as a youthful mistake; others called it deeply offensive.

In one video, a person is seen asking the girls, “Do you know what it means?” before the confrontation begins.

The fight turned physical quickly, with the juvenile victim attempting to spray paint on Miller after he attempted to wipe the derogatory word off the window. Others with Miller then joined the altercation.

The video ends amid chaos, with yelling voices and the camera dropping.

The investigation is ongoing, and additional charges may follow.

Comments: AnnaMarie.Kruse@southeastiowaunion.com