Jury acquits N.Y. Giants ex-player ‘Dek’ Bake in bar fight case
A jury on Friday acquitted a former New York Giants football player of battery in a Newport Beach bar fight, and prosecutors dropped a related assault charge.
Donald “Dek” Bake played defensive end at Texas Tech University and signed with the Giants as a free agent during their Super Bowl-winning season in 2007.
Orange County prosecutors accused Bake of punching a man and then kicking him in the face as he lay on the ground outside American Junkie, a bar at 2406 Newport Blvd., on Dec. 14, 2013, according to defense attorney John Barnett.
The alleged attack broke multiple bones in the man’s face, prompting prosecutors to file a felony assault charge.
At trial, however, a San Bernardino County medical examiner testified the injury was caused by only one blow, Barnett said.
Bake, 31, contended the alleged victim was the aggressor. The man approached Bake inside American Junkie, tried to start a fight and then threw a drink when Bake refused to participate, according to Barnett.
Bouncers separated the two, but later, outside the bar, the man took a swing at Bake, who responded with one punch to the face, Barnett said.
Prosecutors asked a judge to dismiss the assault charge Friday after jurors deadlocked 11-1 in favor of acquittal, Barnett said.
Jurors also cleared Bake of a misdemeanor battery charge that stemmed from a friend of the alleged victim, who claimed he was hit when he stepped in to try to stop Bake, according to Barnett.
In addition to the medical evidence, Barnett said character witnesses flew in from around the country to testify that Bake — at 6-foot-5 and 250 pounds — is a “gentle giant.”
Bake was sidelined by an injury during the Giant’s 2007 season and now runs a real estate company that has offices in Orange County, according to his lawyer.
Bake faced seven years in prison and risked losing his career if he’d been convicted, according to Barnett.
“He’s, to understate it, very relieved that justice was served,” Barnett said.