For Dancers, A Superior Court Performance [With Video]

As a skillfully manic dancer for rapper Lil Wayne, the wildy popular Grammy Award winner and convicted felon, Della Hamby looked more like a schoolteacher – a Sunday school teacher – Wednesday in Hartford Superior Court.

So did her co-defendant, Jennifer Slaughter, also a professionally trained dancer with an impressive resume.

“They’re both great young ladies,” said James E. Sulick, a South Windsor attorney who represented the dancers on charges of third-degree assault and breach of peace.

The women were arrested Sunday night by in connection with an with a waitress at P.F. Chang’s at Westfarms mall. Earlier Sunday, the women were rehearsing for Lil Wayne’s Wednesday night performance at the Comcast Theatre in Hartford.

“I think they’re both very upset about this and wish they were never involved with anything like this,” Sulick said. “This has caused them some problems with their jobs and they’d like to get their lives back.”

Hamby, 26, of North Hollywood, CA, and Slaughter, 24, of Auburn Hills, MI, were suspended for the Hartford stop of Lil Wayne’s “I Am Music II” tour, Sulick said outside of court. The women were visiting Connecticut for the first time, Sulick said.

Unlike Lil Wayne, who last year served eight months at Rikers Island in New York on a gun charge, Hamby, also known in the dancing world as “Dellalicious,” and Slaughter do not appear to have histories of criminal behavior.

“They’re both college graduates and both from great families,” Sulick said. “They’ve been employed as professional dancers for a while now. They just seem like nice young ladies. And I know they’re very sorry to be in the middle of this thing.”

Hamby and Slaughter will be allowed to enter the Hartford Area Mediation Program, Judge John M. Newson ruled. They are expected to meet with the victim to resolve their issues, Sulick said. Their cases were continued to Aug. 24.

“It’s not uncommon for this courthouse to recommend that program [mediation] for this and a variety of misdemeanor cases,” Sulick said.

Neither woman spoke in or outside of court. Sulick declined to offer his clients’ version of the alleged disturbance at Chang’s. Five witnesses gave accounts to police, who answered a call about an assault at the restaurant at 8:12 p.m.

According to police, Hamby, Slaughter and another woman had a disagreement with a waitress about dividing their check three ways. The waitress, a 20-year-old Wethersfield woman, apparently indicated that the procedure was to ask at the start for separate checks. Police said an argument ensued.

After a manager handled the payment, Slaughter returned for her cellphone, police said. The argument heated up, Slaughter raised a hand, and so did the waitress, police said. The waitress said in a statement to police that Slaughter pulled her hair and shoved her down.

“Hamby then got on top of [the waitress] and started to punch her,” said police, who also retrieved a restaurant video of the event.

Hamby and Slaughter, who were taken into custody at a neaby store, will avoid criminal records if each successfully completes mediation, Sulick said.

“I’m not going to address the specific allegations yet,” Sulick said. “I want to see what the mediation process offers first.”

The case was the first called on Newson’s docket and was concluded in less than 10 minutes. A television camera was allowed in the courtroom.

Hamby’ credits include MTV’s “America’s Best Dance Crew," national TV commercials and music videos. She has also worked as a dancer for Mariah Carey and Alicia Keys. Slaughter appeared last year on the “Soul Train Awards” and has performed at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington.

The dancers walked briskly out of Superior Court and through a park to Hartford Community Court, where each formally applied for the mediation program.

“What did they order?” a reporter asked Sulick in a light moment.

“Did they tip the waitress?” another said.

“I don’t want to comment on the facts of the report right now,” Sulick said.

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