Chris Young‘s run-in with Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) officers before his recent arrest was every bit as painful as it looked.
On Tuesday (Jan. 30), the singer showed fans the bruises he incurred after an officer pushed him backwards, causing him to stumble and fall over the corner of a bar. Those injuries include two large, dark bruises: One on the inside of his arm, and the other on his lower back.
“Waaaaaay too close to my spine,” Young writes in sharing the photo, setting his post to a clip of “Don’t Stand So Close to Me,” a 1980 hit from British rock group the Police.
In the comments section of his post, many fans were sympathetic to Young’s experience, while others defended the officers’ actions.
“If you sue them, you help prevent this from happening to other people. How is this ok for them to do?” one commenter wonders.
“Don’t try to stop someone’s job. Can’t feel sorry for you,” another opines. “However, I still like your music!”
The “Young Love & Saturday Nights” star was arrested on charges of disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and assaulting a police officer at Nashville bar the Dawg House earlier this month.
But video footage of the incident — both from security cameras and filmed by other patrons in the bar — shows a different story: Young appeared deferential and cooperative with the officers during his arrest, and seemed to barely tap one of the officers before the man pushed him violently backwards and over a bar.
Charges against the singer were dropped, and Young subsequently flexed on the “trolls” who thought he shouldn’t have touched the officer to begin with.
With all charges against Young now cleared, the incident is — at least, legally — behind him. He’ll likely return to promoting his new album, Young Love & Saturday Nights, which is due for release on March 22.
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Gallery Credit: Billy Dukes