Ramsey County prosecutors have charged Twin Cities-based celebrity chef Justin Sutherland with felony assault for threatening to shoot his girlfriend.
Sutherland, 39, appeared in Ramsey County District Court on Monday on one count of threatening violence after being arrested in St. Paul on Friday night. Court documents state Sutherland allegedly choked his girlfriend, smashed her cellphone and then pointed a gun at her.
Sutherland's attorney, John Daly, told MPR News on Monday that the criminal complaint is “full of false facts.” He said his client never choked the woman and “never pointed a gun at anyone.”
Sutherland was released without bail until his next court appearance. He was ordered to surrender his firearms. He is due to appear again in court next month.
Individual donations help make MPR News accessible to all, without paywalls or barriers.
According to the criminal complaint:
Police responded to multiple 911 calls Friday night to an address on Front Avenue in St. Paul from people concerned about the safety of a woman, later identified as Sutherland's girlfriend.
A passerby reported seeing a man with a gun and a woman with her hands up who appeared to be distressed.
Another caller, the woman's sister, reported hearing the woman's boyfriend (sutherland) threaten to kill the woman during the call and then take the phone and throw it on the ground.
Sutherland's boyfriend told officers the man had pointed a gun at her and threatened to shoot her, and had also been verbally abusive and violent towards her two days earlier, including breaking the windshield of her car.
The woman said she had been in an argument with Sutherland for not going to a planned music festival and that Sutherland was upset that her neighbors were being racist. She told police that Sutherland put his hands around her neck and she fled to a neighbor's house, and when she returned, Sutherland pointed a gun at her. A friend took the gun away from Sutherland, reports said.
Officers found 10 guns in the home, including two in a case on the bed, as well as the woman's broken cell phone.
When he spoke with prison investigators, Sutherland denied making any threats, according to the complaint.
According to the St. Paul Pioneer Press, the judge noted that Sutherland's only previous conviction was for drunk driving more than 15 years ago, and that he had previously appeared in court on schedule.
Sutherland is a chef at several well-known Twin Cities restaurants, has appeared on TV's “Top Chef” and “Iron Chef America,” co-hosted “Fast Foodies” and won an Emmy for hosting his own show, “Taste the Culture.”
Last month, Sutherland and several partners announced plans to open two restaurants this fall in a new development in Minneapolis' Mill District.
Then in May, the Rondo Community Land Trust announced it was partnering with Sutherland and his father to develop a new Golden Time Coffee & Cafe concept in St. Paul's Rondo neighborhood.
If you or someone you know is in a dangerous situation with a partner, there is a statewide 24-hour domestic violence hotline. First day in Minnesota Please contact us at (866) 223-1111 or (612) 399-9995.
