A Kentucky anesthesiologist has been arrested after he was caught on video apparently assaulting several teenagers who were not adhering to social distancing guidelines, which the man going so far as to choke the only black female in the group.
The incident happened last Saturday near the Norton Commons Amphitheater in Prospect, Kentucky, the Louisville Courier-Journal reported. One of the victims told the station the group was approached by an upset couple who scolded the teens for not social distancing.
The Louisville Courier-Journal reports that witnesses said the incident started when the man, who has been identified as John Rademaker, 57, and a woman he was with approached a group of nine teens who were watching a sunset at the Norton Commons Amphitheater.
The video starts with a verbal altercation between the couple and the youths. The incident takes a turn when the doctor, clad in a red shirt, shoves three girls and then proceeds to kneel to choke the sole black girl in the group as she is lying on the ground. The woman was seen apparently holding the teen’s leg while the man was choking her. The man had his hands around the victim’s neck for a few seconds before a young man intervened and the teens began shouting at the couple.
An extended now-deleted Reddit post, which was later found on Twitter, about the encounter was posted by a young man who says he was involved in the encounter. “My friends and I were irresponsibly failing to social distance at Norton Commons Amphitheater,” his post began. “I understand that we are a part of the problem, but I think we in no way warranted what proceeded to happen.
“A couple who was clearly intoxicated and angry approached us while cussing and borderline yelling” the unidentified Reddit user continued. “They were claiming to be physicians, which I don’t doubt, and were criticizing us for being out. The woman shoved her phone in one of the girls faces and she knocked it out of the woman’s hand in an attempt to get her away. That is the initial commotion in the back. The man then shoved/hit two girls out of the way and proceeded to choke the girl on the ground.
“I have an extended video that includes myself yelling at the man to stop. I am not sure that he would have stopped without my presence, as I was one of two guys in the group and am a decent amount bigger than the guy,” the Reddit user added. After explaining that he was reluctant to be identified on video, he would go on to express his disgust about Rademaker’s behavior. “There is an ongoing police investigation, and the video is now allowed to be released, but I think this man deserves to be publicly shamed for what he did. It is embarrassing and terrifying for a grown man to assault an 18 year old girl.”
The young woman who was choked by the man is 18 years old and suffered minor injuries from the assault, television station WDRB reports. Rademaker works for Southern Indiana Anesthesia Consultants. He also works as an “independent physician” for Baptist Health. Both organizations placed him on administrative leave while they investigate the situation.
Rademaker has been charged with first-degree strangulation and three counts of harassment with physical contact, according to Louisville Metro Police Department records.
“Obviously, we do not advise individuals concerned about social distancing to take matters into their own hands and confront people about it, especially in any physical way,” the LMPD said. “We ask people who are concerned about large gatherings to call 311 or 911 to report their concerns.”
