Mary Todd, aged 21, was the latest to be apprehended in connection with a highly publicized altercation that took place on Montgomery’s riverfront last Saturday. She has been charged with third-degree assault, making her the fourth individual to be taken into custody over the incident.
A video from the incident seems to display Todd, identifiable in a purple t-shirt, assaulting a Black riverboat co-captain while he was already under attack by three other white men. This incident ignited a racially charged skirmish which led to the detention of 13 individuals.
The other three arrested alongside Todd are Richard Roberts, 48, Allen Todd, 23, and Zachery Shipman, 25. All of them are facing third-degree assault charges. Roberts surrendered himself on Tuesday, while Allen Todd and Shipman were apprehended on Wednesday evening after evading capture for a short period.
Sources from the police informed Daily Mail that Mary Todd willingly turned herself in and was incarcerated in the municipal jail by Thursday. There has been no clarification regarding her relationship, if any, with Allen Todd.
While the footage shows Todd as part of the initial assault, she found herself overwhelmed when the numbers turned against her group. Subsequent clips depict her being assaulted, including getting punched and having her hair yanked.
Details of the incident further came into light when a statement from riverboat co-captain Damien Pickett became public. Pickett was reportedly trying to adjust the position of a pontoon boat to enable his passenger ferry, Harriott II, to dock at its designated location. The pontoon boat’s proprietors had allegedly ignored requests to shift their boat for almost 45 minutes.
The escalation reached its peak when Pickett reported to the police that a threat was made by one of the men now in custody, warning him against touching the boat. The verbal altercation quickly transformed into a physical one, with videos capturing Pickett being tackled by three men, including Roberts.
Amidst the chaos, Pickett revealed that he heard life-threatening remarks from his attackers. He stated that he held onto someone desperately to shield himself. Fortunately for Pickett, help was not far off as witnesses and colleagues came to his aid, restoring order and ensuring the safety of all involved.
“I was holding on when they pulled him,” Pickett recalled of help arriving to save him. “I looked up, and two people were pulling [the assailants] off, a tall gentleman and a security guard. I fell to the ground again, and the security [guard] grabbed me.”
Once up, Pickett said he yelled for a deckhand to throw him a “line” so he could dock the ferry and unload its dozens of passengers. That ended up adding more fuel to the fire, with enraged passengers yelling and arguing as Pickett’s colleagues stepped in to avenge his attack.
Pickett recalls things getting especially hairy at that moment. He told police he turned and saw his sister being choked out by Roberts—so he leaped into action again.
“I hit [Roberts], grabbed her, and turned around,” he said in the statement. “[Then] MPD had a taser in my face. I told [the officer] I was attacked and said, ‘Can I finish my job?’ Because the back of the boat wasn’t tied.”
Once the dust settled, Pickett said he finished docking the ferry and rushed its passengers off, apologizing for the inconvenience. He says he told cops he had pain in his head, so he was taken to a hospital. Doctors determined he had bruised ribs and a lump on his head, but no serious injuries.