A man from East St. Louis was sentenced Wednesday to 37 months in federal prison for assaulting Park Rangers in an incident that began on the grounds of the Gateway Arch National Park.
On Feb. 28, 2021, Park Rangers made a lawful traffic stop of a vehicle in the Old Cathedral parking lot. Antione Lamont Hawkins, now 39, was in the driver’s seat and an open beer bottle and an open beer carton were in the vehicle. Hawkins admitted that he had been drinking.
Hawkins provided his name but wouldn’t provide identification. He refused to keep his hands on the steering wheel and then became confrontational.
When rangers tried to handcuff Hawkins, he struggled, stomping on one ranger’s foot and kicking him in the leg. When rangers tried to put him in a patrol vehicle, he kicked a ranger in the face. Hawkins grabbed a different ranger by the throat during a struggle in jail.
Hawkins pleaded guilty in December in front of U.S. District Judge Catherine D. Perry to two counts of assaulting an officer.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Bateman is prosecuting the case.
