6-Jul-18 – An evening excursion on Lake Michigan took an unexpectedly wild turn as the Anita Dee charter yacht made its way back to port near Navy Pier, according to Chicago police.

Witnesses and victims told police the boat was approaching its dock east of Lake Shore Drive on June 25 at around 9:05 p.m., when 28-year-old Demetrius Blackwell got into a dispute with other passengers.

A security guard tried to defuse the situation, but Blackwell pushed the 56-year-old man down a staircase, according to a police report.

The Anita Dee’s first mate and another employee then escorted Blackwell from the yacht. That’s when he allegedly “became extremely irate” and began fighting with passengers who were waiting to board the ship. Blackwell put the first mate in a chokehold and spit in his face, prosecutors said.

A 25-year-old passenger from Lincoln Park tried to intervene but Blackwell (left) punched him in the face. Police arrived as Blackwell was walking away. A foot pursuit broke out, going south on Lake Shore Drive. When police caught up with him near Maggie Daley Park, Blackwell flailed his arms and pushed officers, who did an “emergency takedown” of Blackwell and placed him in a patrol car.

Blackwell repeatedly kicked the rear passenger door, damaging the patrol car, according to police, so they took him to Northwestern Memorial Hospital for evaluation. While he was being transferred from the squad car to an ambulance, Blackwell spit in an officer’s face, prosecutors said, and police performed another emergency takedown.

After Blackwell was evaluated, he was taken to the 1st District police station in the South Loop, where prosecutors say he “slipped out of his handcuffs” and bit a police officer. The officer then punched Blackwell.

Prosecutors charged Blackwell with two counts of felony aggravated battery of police, three counts of misdemeanor battery, three counts of resisting police, and one count of criminal damage. Circuit Judge Stephanie Miller ordered him held without bail.