British rock icon Rod Stewart’s plea deal with Florida
prosecutors fell through on Friday. The singer and his son Sean Stewart will
again be scheduled to stand trial on charges they battered a security guard
during a New Year’s Eve bash in 2019.

Both Rod Stewart and his son were not present in the court when
Judge August Bonavita announced that a hearing in which a deal was expected to
be finalised had been cancelled. The pair will now be scheduled to stand trial
on misdemeanour battery charges. The trial is scheduled to start on January 25
next year.

This is at least the second time a deal has fallen through
in the case, which has also been delayed by the coronavirus pandemic. The
Stewarts face a maximum penalty of a year in jail, although such a lengthy-term
would be unlikely.

Prosecutors declined to comment on the failure of the deal.
Defense attorney Guy Fronstin is also yet to comment on the issue.

The Stewarts got into a tussle at The Breakers Hotel with
security guard Jessie Dixon on December 31, 2019, not long before midnight,
police have said according to the Associated Press.

They said the Stewarts were part of a group that tried to
enter a private event in a children’s area at the posh hotel but were not
allowed. The group, which included children, created a scene and would not
leave, police said.

Dixon intervened and Sean Stewart, 41, got in his face,
according to the police report. Dixon told officers he put the back of his
right hand on the younger Stewart’s chest and asked him to back up. Security
video showed Sean Stewart then shoving Dixon and Rod Stewart, 76, punching him
in the ribs.

Rod Stewart, a native of London, is a member of the Rock and
Roll Hall of Fame. His greatest hits include “Maggie May,” “Do
Ya Think I’m Sexy?” and “Tonight’s the Night.” Queen Elizabeth
II knighted him in 2016.

(With AP inputs)