Charges dropped against former NBC10 reporter

Charges against former NBC10 reporter and anchor Dray Clark in connection with an alleged domestic assault have been dismissed.

Chester District Court Judge Spencer B. Seaton Jr. dismissed 16 charges against Clark, 41, at a preliminary hearing on Wednesday, court documents indicate. Charges included simple assault, recklessly endangering another person, terroristic threats, harassment, and disorderly conduct, among other offenses.

Court documents did not say why the charges were dismissed. The Delaware County District Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to request for comment, and neither did Clark’s attorney.

Clark was arrested and charged last month after allegedly assaulting his former girlfriend, Aigner Cleveland, at his home in Chester, The Inquirer reported at the time. A Chester police affidavit of probable cause indicated that Cleveland went to Clark’s home on Sept. 26 to “attempt to rectify” a previous alleged domestic assault that had occurred in New Castle County, Del., for which Clark was also arrested.

“I was left with a black eye, chipped tooth, and a busted jaw. I never hit him back. And I stayed. I justified it. He was arrested (9/21/19) and I still contemplated trying to work it out,” Cleveland, who works as press secretary for Chester Mayor Thaddeus Kirkland, wrote in a formerly public Facebook post. “The fifth and last time, (last night, 9/26/19) he choked me. I finally hit him back but he then shoved me so hard that I have bruises all over my body.”

A police report indicated that in the Sept. 26 incident, an argument escalated into a physical altercation during which Clark allegedly choked Cleveland twice, as well as shoved her to the ground.

Following Clark’s arrest, NBC10 released a statement indicating that it planned to investigate the allegations, and that the reporter would be “off the air pending the station’s investigation.” A station spokesperson confirmed to The Inquirer that Clark is no longer with the station but did not say when his contract was terminated.

Clark began work at NBC10 in September 2017, arriving at the station from New York’s WABC. Prior to that, Clark held a position at CBS3 for five years.