Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen is currently recovering after being attacked in a Florida hotel. TMZ reports that Allen, 59, was smoking a cigarette outside of the Four Seasons Hotel in Fort Lauderdale Beach when a 19-year-old suspect Max Hartley emerged from behind a nearby pole. The young man is said to have begun running full speed at Allen, eventually hitting him and knocking him to the ground.
The outlet goes on to state — per a police report — that a woman came to help Allen, but Hartley shoved her to the ground as well. The woman then attempted to run into the hotel for help, but was stopped by Hartley, who pulled her away by her hair. The 19-year-old fled the scene and ran to another hotel in the area, but was caught sometime later by police after allegedly damaging a number of automobiles. Hartley was arrested and booked on multiple charges: elder abuse, battery and criminal mischief. At this time, the suspect is out of jail after posting bail.
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Allen’s condition is currently unknown. Def Leppard was in town for a co-headlining show with Mötley Crüe set for Sunday at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.
Fans of the iconic rock band will remember that Allen drums with only his right arm — as well as his feet — after losing his left arm in 1984 following a terrible car accident. Allen’s arm was severed in the crash, but doctors were initially able to reattach it. However, the musician ended up suffering an infection the required the arm to be amputated again. Allen eventually recovered from his procedures and continued on as Def Leppard’s drummer.
In a previous interview with EonMusic, Allen discussed his career with Def Leppard and commented on how he and the band have overcome quite an amount of adversity throughout the years. “Yes, and it’s true what they say; if it doesn’t kill you, it makes you stronger,” he said. “You know, somebody asked me recently, ‘Would you change anything?’ And, you think back to that day when you were driving down the road, and it took me a while to really ponder that and go, ‘Well, to be honest, I’m really not sure that I would,’ because it gave me something; it gave me a gift that I’m not sure I would have advanced as far as I am now, had I not had that experience where it nearly took me out.”
He added, “I get the most incredible respect from people all over the planet, and I just hope that I live up to that; that people can see me for really who I am, and that I’m the real deal. It’s not some sort of mask that I wear. We all wear masks; we all wear architypes; we play different roles within life, but I really hope that the resounding message of who I am comes to the surface, and I think that really shows a lot of strength of character.”
