Bates: Ravens fan charged in brutal attack on 3 Commanders fans

BALTIMORE – A 24-year-old Ravens fan has been charged in the attack on three Washington Commanders fans after an Oct. 13 game in Baltimore.

Baltimore State’s Attorney Ivan Bates announced this on Friday evening via X.

“Defendant John Callis was charged today for the alleged assault that was captured on video and seen by many in our community following the Ravens v. Commanders game,” Bates wrote. “The video evidence in this case speaks for itself.”

Video of the Oct. 13 attack, allegedly by Callis, who was wearing a Lamar Jackson jersey, in Federal Hill went viral on social media after the Battle of the Beltway game.

Police say Callis, of Sarasota, Florida, assaulted three people in two separate incidents. Two victims fled and later returned to find their missing phones, police said.

Callis then attacked them again, along with a third victim who recognized his friends and jumped in to help them, police said. Two suffered minor injuries and the third was diagnosed with a concussion and memory loss, police said.

Police issued an arrest warrant for Callis not long after the attack, and he turned himself in four days later.

Callis faces one count of first-degree assault and three counts of second-degree assault.

His attorney, Brian Thompson, said Wednesday that his client has a long history of substance abuse and “had been abusing cocaine and alcohol for a few weeks.”

In his plea for release from pretrial detention, Thompson noted that Callis immediately hired an attorney and surrendered to Baltimore police in the Southern District.

“He has one of the most recognizable faces in the country right now,” Thompson said. “There is no way this boy can go anywhere even if he were inclined to do so, and he has made it clear to the court that he is not inclined to flee but is inclined to come back here and face the charges – and he did.”

But District Judge LaTina Burse Greene ordered Callis held without bail, describing the attack as an “unprovoked attack.” She said she would consider changing her decision if both the defense and prosecution came to her with a plan to release him into an inpatient treatment program with 24/7 house arrest.

“Until then,” Greene said, “he will be held without bond.”

Dylan Segelbaum contributed to this report.

WJZ is a media partner of The Baltimore Banner.