News Segment

NIGHTCLUB GUNMAN FOUGHT WITH GUITARIST:

April 13, 2005

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A man who killed heavy metal musician “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott and three others at a concert had an onstage fight with security officers during a show by the guitarist and his band a year ago in Cincinnati, authorities said.

Nathan Gale jumped on the stage during a Damageplan show in Cincinnati on April 5, 2004, and caused about $1,800 in damage to lights and other equipment during a struggle with security, according to police reports. The band continued playing as Gale was removed from the stage, witnesses said.

On Dec. 8, Gale rushed on stage with a handgun at a Columbus nightclub, killing Abbott and three people who tried to intervene. Gale was shot and killed by a police officer.

Gale, 25, was a fan of Abbott’s former band, Pantera, nominated for a Grammy in 1994. Acquaintances said Gale had accused Pantera of stealing songs from him.

Gale told his mother and a former employer he was diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic before he was given an early discharge from the Marine Corps in October 2003.

No charges were filed against Gale in Cincinnati because band members did not want to return to the city for hearings, The Columbus Dispatch reported Wednesday.

Courtesy of www.ap.org