Two plead guilty in Ala. riverfront brawl

More than two months after a group of white boaters attacked a Black riverboat captain in Montgomery, Alabama, two of five people charged in connection with the racially charged melee pleaded guilty Friday.

The violent scene, which bystanders captured on video, drew an overwhelming social media response and prompted a broader discourse about race in America.

Richard Roberts, 48, pleaded guilty to one count of third-degree assault, a misdemeanor, against Dameion Pickett, the boat captain.

Roberts was ordered to serve 32 days of a four-month suspended jail sentence in a Perry County facility on weekends and complete 100 hours of community service, according to court records.

Roberts also pleaded guilty to one count of misdemeanor assault against Daniel Warren, a 16-year-old deckhand on the boat with Pickett, according to The Montgomery Advertiser.

The newspaper reported that Roberts apologized in court Friday to the teenager and then to Pickett, saying: “I’m sorry we met up like we did. I know you don’t believe it, but if we had met under different circumstances, we probably could have been friends.”

Mary Todd, 21, also pleaded guilty in the episode with Pickett. Todd was originally charged with one count of thirddegree assault that was reduced to a charge of harassment. Todd was ordered to attend an anger management class, according to court records.

Five people involved in the brawl, including Roberts and Todd, turned themselves in to police, officials said. The proceedings for the three others charged in the case are set for November.