Dustin Diamond Found Guilty of Two Misdemeanors in Stabbing Incident
Update: Dustin Diamond has been sentenced to four months in jail for the stabbing incident referenced below, according to The Associated Press. The actor also received 15 months probation. He is to report to jail on Sunday.
Dustin Diamond, who played “Screech” on the sitcom Saved By the Bell, was found guilty Friday of two misdemeanors – carrying a concealed weapon and disorderly conduct with a dangerous weapon – stemming from a December 2014 stabbing incident in Port Washington, Wisconsin. However, the actor managed to avoid a conviction on the felony count of second-degree recklessly endangering safety as a jury found Diamond not guilty of that charge after six hours of deliberations, the Milwaukee Journal- Sentinel reports.
If Diamond was convicted of the felony charge, the actor could have faced 10 years in prison. The actor’s fiancée Amanda Schutz was also found guilty of disorderly conduct from the Christmas incident where Diamond and Schutz got into a fight with two men and another woman, resulting in a melee where one of the men suffered a half-inch puncture mark from a stiletto-folding knife. That bloodied “dangerous weapon” was later found in Diamond’s SUV after the vehicle was pulled over by police.
During the trial, Diamond testified that the fight began when the two men and woman blocked their way and began attacking Schutz. Diamond also said that the knife was just a deterrent from further violence and that the stabbing was accidental. However, witnesses for the prosecution – many of who were cousins with the stabbing victim – said under oath that Schutz was the main aggressor.
Diamond’s testimony differed greatly from what he initially told police officers at the time of his arrest. During closing arguments, Ozaukee County District Attorney Adam Gerol hammered that point home by saying that because of Diamond’s acting background, ” he’s an extraordinarily accomplished liar,” the Journal-Sentinel reports.
Diamond will be sentenced for the two misdemeanor counts on June 25.