Altercation at Patriots Game Leads to Fan’s Death: Assault Charges Filed

Two men from Rhode Island have been charged with assault and battery for an incident at a New England Patriots game in which one fan died. (Photo: WJAR)

Two Men Charged After Scuffle Leads to Fan’s Passing at Gillette Stadium

Two men from Rhode Island have been charged with assault and battery for an incident at a New England Patriots game in which one fan died. In addition, Norfolk district attorney Jonathan Blodgett announced in a press release that the passing of Dale Mooney on September 17 had been declared by the medical examiner to have also been a homicide. Nevertheless, prosecutors determined that there was not sufficient evidence to file charges of homicide.

John Vieira and Justin Mitchell of Warwick were arrested in connection. The accused are charged with assault and battery, as well as disorderly conduct. They are both scheduled to be brought up on these charges in January. Whereas Mitchell’s attorney, Daniel Gelb, has already had contact with the TV station (CNN), Vieira does not yet have an appointed lawyer.

The allegations originated from an incident at the Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts on 17th September. During a fourth-quarter scuffle in an American football game between New England and Miami, 53-year-old Dale Mooney of Newmarket, New Hampshire tragically passed away. A witness said that Mooney spent the night engaged in “hand-hand combat,” eventually collapsing and passing away.

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Preliminary autopsy results did not detect traumatic injury but pointed to another medical cause. Consequently, it was not until recently that the police attempt to explain Mooney’s death — “ probable cardiac dysrhythmia in a person with severe hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease during physical confrontation ” — was issued by the DA. In their final findings, the medical examiner determined that Mooney had died of a homicide.

The case was thoroughly investigated by the office of a district attorney, and on reviewing all relevant evidence (such as autopsy reports), including several angles of videotape that recorded details regarding this incident from start to finish; they did not feel there were grounds for prosecution involving homicide. In addition, they thanked the public for submitting their privately recorded videos of the incident and enumerated their appreciation to investigators at the Foxborough Police Department.

The victim’s family and the accused alike have suffered from this incident, which has also seen someone lose their life for no apparent reason. This tragedy should serve as a poignant lesson about the pitfalls of public confrontations, particularly in contentious sporting environments.

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