Attorneys eye what led to charge against Motley Crue’s Neil

By Ken Ritter, The Associated Press

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Attorneys for Vince Neil said Wednesday they’re investigating what led to a misdemeanour battery charge accusing the Motley Crue frontman of grabbing a woman’s hair and pulling her to the ground in April outside a Las Vegas Strip resort.

Neil, 55, didn’t appear in court with attorneys David Chesnoff and Richard Schonfeld, who entered a not guilty plea on his behalf.

Outside court, Chesnoff said he needs to complete his investigation and review the evidence before he comments.

“I ask people not to prejudge situations until all the facts come in,” he said.

The allegation came to light after bystander video showed actor Nicolas Cage physically restraining Neil before police arrived April 7 outside the Aria casino-hotel.

A female autograph seeker told police that Neil grabbed her.

Neil wasn’t arrested at the time and Cage wasn’t accused of a crime. Chesnoff described the two men as friends.

Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Cynthia Cruz set a Sept. 19 trial date.

Motley Crue is a heavy metal band known as much for 1980s-era partying and famous girlfriends as for hits like “Girls, Girls, Girls” and “Dr. Feelgood.”

Neil lives in Las Vegas, where he has had several business ventures — tattoo shops, bars, a strip club, an Arena Football League team — as well as several scrapes with the law over the years.

He pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct in November 2011 and paid a fine for poking an ex-girlfriend in the chest with his finger at a casino lounge, and he served 10 days in jail in February 2011 for driving his black Lamborghini sports car while drunk in June 2010.

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This story has been corrected to say the hearing was Wednesday, not Tuesday.

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