ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, January 6, 1996 TAG: 9601080015
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: S.D. HARRINGTON STAFF WRITER
Steve White said that up to three weeks ago, he still couldn't touch his ear without it hurting.
The pain was a reminder of an incident in May when he was a bouncer at the Tanglewood Holiday Inn's Elephant Walk nightclub. Part of White's ear was bitten off during a confrontation with a customer.
The man accused of the biting was convicted of misdemeanor assault and battery Thursday in Roanoke County Circuit Court. He'd originally been charged with malicious wounding.
Timothy Thompson, 26, was sentenced to three months in jail.
During courtroom testimony, Thompson's attorney, David Lawrence, said it was hard to get a clear picture of what exactly happened the night that Thompson bit White's ear.
Thompson testified that he acted in self-defense because he said White had grabbed him by the testicles and others were ganging up on him.
Thompson said in a police report that he was given a hard time when he tried to get his motorcycle helmet and jacket from a doorman.
The confrontation became heated when he tried to re-enter the club to complain to the manager. Others, including security guards, surrounded Thompson, he said.
White said he merely was trying to control the situation and that he was the only one confronting Thompson.
"It was just me and him," White said Friday. However, others joined to help once they saw what happened to White, he said.
When Thompson tried to escape the club, he bit White's ear.
White says his ear has healed, although the pain was unbearable for nearly seven months.
After the incident, someone at the nightclub picked up the ear and put it into a cup of ice. A rescue worker took the ear with White, and doctors at Roanoke Memorial Hospital sewed part of his ear back on.
White has quit his job at the Elephant Walk.
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