For almost a week, Scott Stapp has suffered a public-relations beatdown stemming from reports of a Thanksgiving-night fracas in a Baltimore hotel between him and members of 311. Now he's firing back.

On Wednesday (December 7), Stapp released a statement refuting claims made by 311 that he started the brawl (see [article id="1517207"]" 'Out Of Control' Scott Stapp Incites Melee With 311 At Baltimore Hotel"[/article]), and pointed to an Associated Press report that he said places the blame squarely on 311's collective shoulders.

"This is a very unfortunate situation; however, there are two sides to every story. I was at the hotel celebrating Thanksgiving and my engagement with my new fiancee when the fight started," the statement read. "As The Associated Press reported and confirmed, I did not instigate this altercation."

The statement refers to a December 2 AP story that quotes Jonathan Jordan, director of security at the Harbor Court Hotel, as saying the fight "was definitely started by 311."

Stapp's tour manager, Rob Kern, is also quoted in the statement, saying that he spoke to the front-desk manager at the hotel and "they confirmed that Scott was not at fault."

When MTV News originally reported the story on December 1, a spokesperson for the hotel had no comment on the fight.

In their own statement Wednesday, 311's Chad Sexton responded to Stapp's claims by saying: "We stand by our initial statement 100 percent. With complete certainty I can tell you that Scott Stapp was acting totally belligerent, he smashed a shot glass on the bar, he got into an argument with patrons at the bar, he made a disrespectful remark to [Doug 'SA' Martinez]'s wife, and he threw the first punch which started the fight. Scott can say whatever he wants, but that's what happened."