Comedian Dave Chappelle was recently attacked during his show at the Hollywood Bowl. The incident happened a few weeks after Chris Rock was slapped by Will Smith for making an offensive joke at the Academy Awards. Police have revealed that the man who attacked Chappelle at the LA show has been identified and arrested.
The Man Who Attacked Dave Chappelle Has Been Arrested
Recently, comedian Dave Chappelle was attacked at his LA show for, as many speculate, making a trans joke on stage.
Law enforcement officials were quick to identify the man behind the attack that took place at the Hollywood Bowl. Isaiah Lee, a 23-year-old man had stomped toward the comedian while Chappelle was performing at the Netflix is a Joke festival on stage. The attack was made just a few weeks after Will Smith slapped Chris Rock for cracking an offensive joke at the Academy Awards.
However, the reason for attacking Chappelle still is not clear. While many think it was just a way to attract the public's attention, others believe that the attack might have been propelled by Chappelle's jokes regarding race and gender.
The comedian has been under the spotlight for his transphobic jokes and acknowledged it too by saying that his attacker "was a trans man". Lee has been arrested and charged with assault by the officials but it is still under investigation as to how the 23-year-old was able to get the weapon through the metal detectors.
Reportedly, Lee was carrying "a weapon that police say can eject a knife blade when discharged correctly." It has not been made clear if the attack was caused by the offensive joke or if Lee attended the show with the intent to attack Chappelle.
After the attack, the comedian took a short break backstage and then returned with a joke about his increased security following his controversial Netflix special The Closer.
The show had received backlash from not only the public but also Netflix's transgender employees who protested in response to the support Chappelle received from the CEO Reed Hastings.
On the seriousness of the attack, the Los Angeles Police Department informed that Chappelle was not harmed while Lee had received superficial injuries and was admitted to the hospital.
