Alabama Shakes Drummer Steven William Johnson Has Child Abuse Charge Dismissed

Alabama Shakes drummer Steven William Johnson is no longer face a charge of child abuse in Limestone County, Alabama, The Associated Press reports. When reached by Pitchfork, Johnson’s attorneys Nick Lough and Marcus Helstowski shared the following statement:

Steve Johnson maintained his innocence throughout the course of this entire ordeal. Just like anyone charged with a crime, Mr. Johnson had to wait for his day in court. People are quick to make judgments and assumptions based on catchy headlines when cases like this first surface. We’re thankful that after more than a year this allegation has been put to rest and Mr. Johnson’s name has been cleared of any wrongdoing.

Johnson was arrested in March after reportedly being indicted on charges of “willful torture, willful abuse and cruelly beating or otherwise willfully maltreating a child under the age of 18.” Following the charge’s dismissal, Lough told The AP, “It was a spanking incident and nothing more, and it resulted in a criminal indictment. The charge of child abuse has been dismissed.”

Johnson is a founding member of Alabama Shakes and played on both 2012’s Boys & Girls and 2015’s Sound & Color. The group went on hiatus in 2018 as frontperson Brittany Howard turned her focus toward her solo work.

Pitchfork has contacted Nick Lough and Alabama Shakes’ representatives for comment and additional information.