Suspects in Dave Brainard's assault claim self-defense

The attorney for a man police have accused of assaulting record producer Dave Brainard says his client was acting in self-defense.

"My clients were defending themselves, and he got hurt accidentally in the process," Nashville attorney Mark Scruggs told The Tennessean on Thursday.

Dustin Hargrove, 30, was charged with felony aggravated assault and misdemeanor assault after the Sept. 27 incident that left Brainard facing emergency surgery. Nichole Hargrove, 30, was charged with misdemeanor assault. The couple lives in Columbia.

Scruggs said it was Brainard and his friend Deborah DeLoach who initiated a confrontation after the Hargroves' car nearly hit them on a crosswalk in the Demonbreun Hill neighborhood. Police have said it was the Hargroves that started the confrontation.

Scruggs said DeLoach would not get out of the way of the car and began shouting, prompting Nichole Hargrove to get out to try and make her move. The lawyer said Dustin Hargrove opened his door to get out and break up the fight when Brainard approached him.

"Before he can even get away from his door, Brainard comes around to his side and confronts him," Scruggs said, later adding: "Brainard brought this on himself."

Dustin Hargrove was trying to hold off Brainard when Brainard fell and hit his jaw, Scruggs said. He said Dustin Hargrove thought Brainard was a drunk who lost control.

"He had no idea Brainard had been injured so badly," Scruggs said.

Scruggs is asking Nashville General Sessions Judge Casey Moreland to order the release of Brainard's medical records.

Scruggs said he wants to know if Brainard was intoxicated during the incident, saying that may have fueled his actions. He wants the records to try and end the case as soon as possible, he said, adding that media interviews with Brainard have harmed the Hargroves' reputations.

But Assistant District Attorney General Vince Wyatt said the request for records was an attempt to stall the case, which is set for a Jan. 27 preliminary hearing. At that hearing, the judge will decide whether there is evidence to send the case to a grand jury.

"The victim has nothing to hide," Wyatt said. "I feel like it's an attempt to delay the process."

According to Nashville police, DeLoach was nearly hit by the Hargroves' Infiniti sedan, prompting Nichole Hargrove to get out and start yelling.

Police said the altercation escalated and Dustin Hargrove got out and choked Brainard until Brainard lost consciousness and fell. Nichole Hargrove grabbed DeLoach's hair and forced her to the ground before Dustin Hargrove used his leg to pin DeLoach, police said.

Brainard, who has worked with country artists Brandy Clark, Jamey Johnson and Jerrod Niemann among many others, spoke with The Tennessean after the incident, painting a picture of the suspects as violent and in a possibly drug-fueled rage. He underwent emergency surgery that left him with his jaw wired shut after the incident.

Brainard's manager, Stephen Linn of AmpliFLY Entertainment, said Thursday that Brainard has "said before, he trusts the process and the investigation will reveal the facts of what really happened."

Reach Stacey Barchenger at 615-726-8968 or on Twitter @sbarchenger.