Shia LaBeouf Faces Hate Crime Allegations After Mardi Gras Brawl

Shia LaBeouf could be charged with a hate crime for yelling homophobic slurs during Tuesday's Mardi Gras brawl.

Things have escalated in the wake of Mardi Gras, where Shia LaBeouf allegedly hit two people in heated confrontations. Jeffrey Dammit, one of the key persons involved, said LaBeouf had threatened him at an earlier encounter at a bar on Royal Street, during 16 February's Lundi Gras celebrations.

LaBeouf was allegedly erratic and aggressive when he first approached Damnit, who initially didn't recognise the actor. 'I shrugged it off,' Damnit told Fox 8 New Orleans. 'He wasn't a large fellow by any means. His friends kind of pulled (him) to the side. Then, he came towards me again and got his finger up in my face.'

LaBeouf Encountered Victim Before Mardi Gras Scuffle

Damnit did not think much of the encounter until an onlooker told him it was LaBeouf. 'Somebody came out and just said, "Did Shia LaBeouf just try to beat you up?" And I'm like, "No, no, no,"' he recalled. 'Like this guy had finger tattoos and stuff. I'm like, "He can't be a famous actor." Then, I googled "Shia LaBeouf finger tattoo," and I'm like, "Holy crap! That's Shia LaBeouf that tried to beat me up."'

Damnit said he saw LaBeouf again at the same bar on Mardi Gras Day, after midnight. The actor was allegedly yelling homophobic slurs earlier that night.

'He kept rushing towards everybody,' he continued. 'At one point, he rushes up and hits me in the body. Knocks me back a little.'

Victim Wants LaBeouf Charged for Homophobic Hate Crime

Damnit, a queer man who was born Jeffrey Klein, said LaBeouf's conduct was beyond reprehensible. 'I mean, it's a hate crime, right? You're beating people up because somewhere in your mind their sexuality goes against what you think should get to live,' he asserted.

Per The Guardian, there's a mobile phone video of LaBeouf calling Damnit a "fa***t" in the aftermath, when first responders were attending to the latter. 'Keep on calling me fa***t,' Damnit reportedly retorted in the video.

Police identified one Nathan Thomas Reed as another victim in the case. Reed, who identified himself as queer man, bolstered Damnit's allegations. 'I want it to be known that [LaBeouf] was calling people fa***t,' he told in a text message to the outlet.

Omitted from the final sworn court statement, an initial police report also noted LaBeouf saying, 'These f*****s put me in jail. I'm a Catholic.' If substantiated, that could be damning grounds for a hate crime under Louisiana law.

Damnit, a Screen Actors Guild member, has also called on the union to hold LaBeouf accountable.

LaBeouf's History of Using Homophobic Slurs

LaBeouf's representatives have yet to comment on the allegations, which add up to the actor's history of using homophobic slurs.

A YouTube clip of a pre-2010 video showed the actor yelling an anti-gay slur during a game with friends. During a Broadway theatre ejection incident on 26 June 2014, witnesses also claimed they saw LeBeouf threaten his arresting police officers, calling the latter homophobic slurs

LaBeaouf was arrested but released from custody shortly after the incident. He is scheduled for his next court appearance on March 19.