Cleveland – Rhythm & blues recording artist Gerald Levert will not face assault charges for his confrontation with police here on Friday.
Prosecutor Anthony Jordan said that there was no evidence the singer caused serious physical harm to patrolmen Ronald W. Ross and Daniel Lentz.
Levert, 38, was charged with drunken driving, impeding traffic, obstructing police business and resisting arrest.
Police said Levert and a passenger in his car, James Austin Jr. of Canton, intervened when authorities stopped a friend of Levert’s for speeding at 12:45 a.m.
Ross said he hurt his wrist while dealing with Levert and Lentz said he hurt his shoulder while trying to detain Austin.
“If these officers were assaulted and injured as a result of that assault, there should have been a charge of assault on a police officer, a felony,” said Bob Beck, president of the Cleveland Police Patrolmen’s Association.
Austin, 27, is charged with felonious assault for allegedly punching Lentz in the face.
Levert, of Newbury, about 20 miles east of Cleveland, is the son of Eddie Levert, a founding member of The O’Jays, a longtime R&B group. Gerald Levert became lead singer of the trio Levert in 1985. He began his solo recording career in 1991.
