Staten Island woman found guilty of simple assault on South Brunswick Soccer Club volunteer
By: Matthew Armstrong
A Staten Island woman accused of assaulting a South Brunswick volunteer following a youth soccer game was found guilty Tuesday.
The incident occurred during a September soccer match at Sondek Park between children from Staten Island and North Hunterdon.
Jaqueline Lennon, 38, of Staten Island was found guilty of simple assault on South Brunswick Soccer Club volunteer Debra Frey, 39. Ms. Frey was found not-guilty of the same charge, which was filed by Ms. Lennon.
Municipal Court Judge Michael Dowgin issued a $250 fine and ordered 20 hours of community service with youth sports. The maximum penalty for simple assault is a fine of $1,000 or six months in jail.
"This is an opportunity for the court to say that this type of activity at youth sporting events is not to be tolerated," argued Robert Thuring, attorney for Ms. Frey. "We need to draw a line in the sand."
The hearing recounted Sept. 10 events at Sondek Park, when a fight between parents of two opposing soccer teams broke out. The fight brought a premature end to the game. The game was a semifinal for 9-year-old soccer players from North Hunterdon and Staten Island, N.Y.
Four teams were vying for a berth in the finals the next day. The incident occurred during a sudden-death shoot-out between the two teams.
During the shoot-out, a North Hunterdon parent was standing behind the goal. In soccer, no one is permitted to stand behind the endline. The trainer for the Staten Island team asked the referee to tell that parent to move. The North Hunterdon parent obliged and came over to the side of the field where parents of the Staten Island kids were standing.
An argument between the North Hunterdon parent and a Staten Island parent ensued and Lawrence Ross, 37, Ms. Lennon’s husband, tried to separate the two men who had begun to push each other. Mr. Ross was allegedly punched by the North Hunterdon parent and fell to the ground. A crowd quickly swarmed around trying to break up the fight, and officials terminated the game, disqualifying both teams.
Mr. Ross did not press charges because he said the North Hunterdon parent apologized to him later in the parking lot.
"I do believe Mr. Ross was a victim, but that has nothing to do with this case," said Judge Dowgin.
Volunteers operating the tournament asked everyone to leave, and the parents and the children began making their way off the field to the parking lots. Ms. Frey, who said that some of the Staten Island parents were angry and cursing loudly, asked them to stop.
"I just came back from seeing these kids crying on the field and I said, ‘For the sake of the kids, please stop. They don’t need to see this,’" said Ms. Frey, who testified that Ms. Lennon was cursing loudly as she walked up to the parking lot.
Ms. Lennon, pushing her 1-year-old child in a baby carriage and with her 9-year-old daughter by her side, said she was annoyed with South Brunswick volunteers because they were admonishing the Staten Island parents more than the North Hunterdon parents.
"They were treating us like we did something wrong," said Ms. Lennon, who testified that she was not cursing and was just trying to get her children away from the ugly situation. "She (Ms. Frey) came up in my face and said, ‘Why don’t you shut up?’ and I said, ‘Why don’t you shut up and mind your business? You don’t know what happened.’ I was the one who should be upset, my husband just got punched."
Those testifying in on Ms. Frey’s behalf said she was not singling anyone out, and was just pleading with a group of angry parents to calm down for the benefit of the children. They also said that Ms. Lennon was the aggressor and let go of her baby carriage to approach Ms. Frey and push her.
"The first I saw of her was when she pushed me," said Ms. Frey. "And I told her, ‘You can’t do that, I’m pressing charges.’ "
Ms. Lennon and Ms. Ross said that Ms. Frey was chastising them, telling them that they should be ashamed of themselves, when they believed themselves to be the victims. Ms. Lennon said that Ms. Frey was so close to her that she was bumping into her, her baby carriage, and her daughter, and was preventing them from going to the parking lot. At that point, Ms. Lennon pushed Ms. Frey.
After hearing conflicting testimony from both sides, Judge Dowgin said Ms. Frey’s story was more credible. Despite the different accounts of the incident, it was clear that Ms. Lennon had pushed Ms. Frey, he said.
"There is absolutely no reason why Ms. Lennon had to have the contact that everyone admits she had with Ms. Frey," said Judge Dowgin.
Yet it was unclear whether Ms. Frey ever touched Ms. Lennon.
"(Ms. Frey’s) husband right behind her never sees Ms. Frey touch Ms. Lennon," said Judge Dowgin. "In her direct, there was no testimony of Ms. Frey ever touching her or her family. I find her testimony in a number of ways inconsistent and Ms. Lennon’s credibility is questioned."
The Judge’s decision was based on the fact that, while Ms. Frey was not harmed, there was an intent to cause bodily harm. Ms. Lennon’s sentence is intended to prevent a similar situation in the future, the judge said.
"To have this happen in front of a child is outrageous," said Judge Dowgin said to Ms. Lennon. "You have an anger problem. To have it erupt in front of your child, you have a problem."
Ms. Lennon disagreed with the decision. She said she was just trying to protect her children. Judge Dowgin did not order counseling because it would do nothing if she didn’t believe she had a problem, he said. Instead, he ordered her to perform 20 hours of community service helping out with youth sports.