Dustin Diamond, former star of Saved by the Bell, charged with stabbing man in Wisconsin
THE actor who played Screech in the popular 90s sitcom has been charged with stabbing a man during a bar fight on Christmas Day.
AMERICAN television actor Dustin Diamond, who played Screech on the 1990s TV show Saved by the Bell, has been charged with stabbing a man during a bar fight on Christmas Day.
Diamond, 37, faces charges of felony second-degree recklessly endangering safety charge, disorderly conduct and carrying a concealed weapon.
According to the criminal complaint, Diamond told police that he and his fiancee went out to several bars on Thursday night in Port Washington, about 30 miles north of Milwaukee.
The couple, who lives in Port Washington, got into a tussle with two men and another woman at the Grand Avenue Saloon, the complaint said.
Port Washington police say they responded at 11.15pm on Thursday to a report of a stabbing at a bar.
Diamond told police he had a “pen” in his hand when he grabbed one of the men, according to the complaint.
Port Washington police found in the car a switchblade, the point of which was covered in what appeared to be blood.
Diamond later told police he accidentally stabbed the man while trying to defend his fiancee, according to the complaint.
The man had been stabbed under the armpit and police said he was not seriously injured.
Diamond appeared on Friday afternoon in Ozaukee County court, where bail was set at $US10,000 ($AU10,819). His next hearing is scheduled for December 29. His fiancee, 27-year-old Amanda Schutz, also faces a disorderly conduct charge.
Since his decade-long run at Bayside High, Diamond has been sued several times for delinquent taxes and in foreclosure proceedings for missing mortgage payments. He has appeared on reality TV shows including Celebrity Big Brother, made a sex tape and most recently produced a tell-all documentary on Lifetime TV called The Unauthorised Saved by the Bell Story.
Saved by the Bell screened for four seasons from 1989-1993 and launched the careers of Mario Lopez and Elizabeth Berkley, among others.
Originally published as Dustin Diamond, former star of Saved by the Bell, charged with stabbing man in Wisconsin