Hockey Dad Manslaughter Trial

AlphaGam1019 · #1 01-11-2002, 03:20 PM

Anyone following this trial? It's had tons of media coverage.

Here's the background:
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CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (Court TV) — It should have been fun — a summer day, an open ice rink and enough boys to get a pick-up hockey game going. But on July 5, 2000, the play on the ice was rough, two fathers got angry, and in the end, one beat the other to near death in front of several young players. The victim, Michael Costin, died two days later from his injuries.

The killing of Costin, the informal referee of the game, by Thomas Junta, who was unhappy with the on-ice roughhousing, drew national attention to parental violence in youth sports, a phenomenon dubbed sideline rage.

Now, a jury must decide whether Junta killed Costin in a fury over the game and should be convicted of manslaughter, or was simply defending himself and should be acquitted. The trial, scheduled to begin Jan. 2, is expected to include dramatic accounts of the fatal fight from Junta and the victim's children, who watched as Junta beat their father unconscious. If found guilty, Junta, a 44-year-old father of two, faces 20 years in prison.

THE CRIME

The truck driver went to the Burbank Ice Arena in Reading on the afternoon of July 5 to pick up his 10-year-old son, Quinlan, and two playmates and take them for a swim. When he got to the arena, where the boys had been skating for several hours, he found them engaged in a scrimmage with other young players, including the three sons of Costin. All were in full protective gear. Costin, a 40-year-old part-time laborer who Junta had never met before, was refereeing the game.

Immediately, Junta did not like what he saw.

"They were hitting each other, cheap shots the whole way," Junta told detectives in an interview after a mortally wounded Costin was taken to the hospital. "Mainly the other kids — not our kids. Our kids were just, like retaliation things."

Junta said he ran to the door of the rink and yelled, "None of that cheap shot bull----. This is supposed to be fun hockey." He said Costin was dismissive and replied, "That's hockey." A few minutes later, Junta told detectives, another player knocked Quinlan in the face.

"I seen my son holding his neck and his face, and he gets off the ice, and he's in the locker room crying," said Junta. "I told him, 'If you are going to play here like this you have to...defend yourself and stuff.'"

From outside the locker room, Junta told detectives, he heard Costin again say, "That's hockey." The two men began yelling profanities and soon "we started going at it."

According to Junta, the men lunged at each other and Costin ripped Junta's shirt and kicked him with ice skates. Eventually, Junta said, two bystanders separated the men. Junta told his son to get dressed quickly and then went to the parking lot to wait. Prosecutors claim he was ordered to leave by an assistant rink manager. Junta told detectives that after a couple of minutes, he worried about his son's safety and re-entered the arena.

There, he met Costin. According to prosecutors, Costin tried to punch Junta. Both men were about 6 feet tall, but at 275 pounds, Junta outweighed Costin by 100 pounds. The bigger man pinned Costin to the ground and began punching him. Junta told detectives that Costin was trying to hit and kick him, and said he threw three or four punches, enough, he admitted, to make both fists sore.

Prosecutors contend Junta hit Costin as many as six times and twice slammed his head against the floor. Junta said he heard his son and his playmates yelling for him to stop and noticed that Costin had a nose bleed. He got off the floor, but Costin lay still.

"[O]ne of his kids said, 'Dad get up,'" Junta recalled.

Costin could not get up. The assault injured an artery, preventing blood flow to his brain, and he died two days later in the hospital.

Costin's death shocked the community and devastated his four children, ages 9 to 12, whom he was raising alone. Family friends said one of his sons was so distraught he tried to climb into the casket during the viewing.

In August, a grand jury indicted Junta for manslaughter. Prosecutors said the evidence did not support a murder charge because there was no indication that Junta intended to kill Costin.

Junta is free on $5,000 bail.

THE DEFENSE

Junta's lawyers, Thomas Orlandi Jr. and John O'Connor, will try to convince jurors that Costin was the aggressor in the fight and that their client was merely trying to defend himself.

The defense originally intended to attack Costin's character, but Middlesex Superior Court Judge Charles Grabau, who will preside over the trial, has ruled inadmissible much of the evidence that Costin was, at least at some point, a violent alcoholic with a long rap sheet and a troubled family.

Costin's own father, Augustine, was convicted of manslaughter for the 1976 stabbing of his elder son Dennis. As a young adult, Michael Costin ran afoul of the law and over the next dozen years, served seven different prison sentences for crimes ranging from assault on a police officer to breaking and entering.

At one point, Junta's lawyers said Augustine Costin had volunteered to testify for the defense that his son had a history of drug and alcohol abuse, had assaulted his former wife and children, and had extensive psychiatric problems that resulted in several hospitalizations and Social Security disability payments. The elder Costin denied offering to testify and accused the defense of exaggerations, but acknowledged that his son was a troubled person.

Costin was carrying several medications at the time of the beating, including drugs to treat anxiety, depression, insomnia and seizures.

Judge Grabau, however, ruled that the defense cannot tell the jury about Costin's mental history, nor the medications.

Without that evidence, the defense will rely heavily on the testimony of Junta himself. To back up his self-defense story, his lawyers can draw bruises and scrapes Junta sustained during the fight.

Also, in court papers, prosecutors backed up at least one part of Junta's account — that Costin took the first swing during the fatal fight. In his statement to detectives just a few hours after the altercation, he said that Costin was violent, tore his shirt and kicked him with his skates.

THE PROSECUTION

Prosecutors are expected to argue that Junta killed Costin in a rage over body-checking during the scrimmage. Prosecutors will try to prove that Junta was not acting in self-defense but in anger. And their strongest witness may be Junta himself. He told detectives just a few hours after the altercation, "He wasn't afraid of me, I wasn't afraid of him." If Junta did not fear for his life, prosecutors will argue, how can the killing be self-defense?

Junta also says in the statement that he pummeled Costin with both fists until they hurt and heard children screaming at him to stop even as he hit Costin.

Among witnesses to the altercation prosecutors may call are skating rink staff and the young players, including Costin's children.

In court last month, Assistant District Attorney Sheila Calkins said she wants to call a witness who claims to have overheard a conversation between Junta and Quinlan prior to the first fight. Quinlan, according to the prosecutor, told his father that Costin told him not to cross-check. That infuriated Junta, who felt his son had repeatedly been checked by other players, Calkins said.

Another key part of the prosecution case is the size difference between the two men. Prosecutors will show the jury pictures of Costin, quite diminutive compared to Junta, and suggest the smaller man could not have intimidated Junta.

The maximum penalty for a manslaughter conviction is 20 years.

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A Mass. jury must decide whether Thomas Junta feared for his life or was simply irate over his victim's policing of a youth hockey game.
What do you think Junta's punishment should be? Was this just self defense?

Optimist Prime · #2 01-11-2002, 03:37 PM

i think it was self defense but the prosecuter is a very good lawyer. I think if i was the defence lawyer i would try to get the charge reduced to "excesive defence" which in some places is between, "YOu killed him on purpose" and "he would have killed me if i didn't." From watching court tv it seems like the other guy came back and started it, and the defentant guy looks like someone i would not want to come back and fight. He looks like he could do more to me than i could to him, so I would let the hockey game go.

Lil_G · #3 01-11-2002, 04:18 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Optimist Prime
i think it was self defense but the prosecuter is a very good lawyer. I think if i was the defence lawyer i would try to get the charge reduced to "excesive defence" which in some places is between, "YOu killed him on purpose" and "he would have killed me if i didn't." From watching court tv it seems like the other guy came back and started it, and the defentant guy looks like someone i would not want to come back and fight. He looks like he could do more to me than i could to him, so I would let the hockey game go.

you're right, that prosecutor is very good and I hardly see Costin picking a fight with Junta, that man is enormous.

Optimist Prime · #4 01-11-2002, 05:02 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Lil_G

you're right, that prosecutor is very good and I hardly see Costin picking a fight with Junta, that man is enormous.

Yeah, but i think he did start the fight. I don't thihnk it was a good idea, but I think it was self defence.

The1calledTKE · #5 01-11-2002, 05:41 PM

I think the guy is guilty. Even if the other guy started it he should have stopped hitting him after he was knocked out. On court tv they said he had 15 seperate bruises.

AlphaGam1019 · #6 01-11-2002, 07:21 PM

The jury came back with an "involuntary manslaughter" verdict for Junta.

Lil_G · #7 01-11-2002, 10:30 PM

so the verdict is in....whether in self-defence or not, whether his mind was in a rage and not thinking clearly, his actions determined the verdict. When we talk about such a disproportion in size with Junta and Colin, there's no denying that subconsciously he was aware that he was so much bigger than his opponent and thus in not in any real danger....to qoute jerry seinfeld, "kramer, you don't need karate, you can wring his neck..." - this is what it would be like if I were to pick a fight with someone a hundred pounds lighter than myself - a 12 yr. old kid. If a kid decided for whatever reason to attack me I would maintain an inherent conscious that much force would NOT be needed to repel someone of such stature. Junta had to be aware of this and had to known that he was using far too much self-defence.

AlphaChiGirl · #8 01-11-2002, 10:34 PM

If it was "self-defence", it was excessive!

I just chalk it up to an extreme case of "sports parents gone bad". Whether or not the guy had a history of mental problems/crime, his past had nothing to do with the fact that a larger man beat him TO DEATH with a hockey puck (one designed for a child!). That took a lot...much more than what can be considered "self-defence".

tridelta4ever · #9 01-11-2002, 10:58 PM

This is such a depressing story, and it disturbs me that the potential sentence for this murderer is only a few years. I just don't think that's right. It is one thing to defend yourself, but there is a BIG line that was crossed in this case - a line that I believe was consciously crossed, and I'm not entirely pleased with the involuntary manslaughter verdict as a result.

Just my thoughts...I will look forward to hearing more comments on this topic.

Carrie

Miami1839 · #10 01-11-2002, 11:32 PM

I agree. I think he got extremely lucky and the decision sort of set a bad precedent. Theres a big difference between having a healthy rivalry and killing a human being in cold blood. No matter what the reason. I think they gave the jury way too many options. I just had a gut feeling that the guy killed the other parent in a fit of rage and he was trying to cover it up in court. I really hope the guy gets tons of therapy and does tons of community service when he gets parolled.

Kevin

James · #11 01-12-2002, 02:20 AM

Some of you people are delusional.

The weight difference is not that important. We are not slicing up steaks here. We are talking about two full grown adults with a lot of power behind them. A hundred pound weight difference can make a difference but it is not as profound as you think.

If a 140 pound 15 year old kicks you in the knee cap he can crush your knee easily.

So what happened, they had an argument, tempers flared, blows were exchanged and someone died.

6 blows were excessive? I could strike you 6 times full powered in the space of a couple heart beats.

He came back into the area and the guy threw a punch at him. He reacted in anger. Anger is a self defense mechanism that is often invoked during feelings of threat. He hit the guy back, the guy fell to the ground, he followed the guy down and hit him a few more times. A freaksih thing happens and a blood vessel goes wrong and the guy died.

ITs both their faults, but the other guy definitely provoked the second phase of the altercation.

Bad Prescedent Kevin? Yes it shows a bad prescedent, you can go to jail for years if you defend yourself and something goes wrong. And in our society if someone dies, someone has to pay.

IF you have followed this at all its become a media event, and a political issue.

I understand the way the law reads for involuntary manslaughter, but sheez sometimes the people that enforce the law need to have their heads examined.

Also, for those of you that have never been in serious danger, an open physical fight with someone that can easily hurt you badly, you should beware judging so quickly because you don't know what its like.

justamom · #12 01-12-2002, 09:03 AM

Our area is getting more and more violent where sports are concerned. It isn't just the HS level, but Middle School, rec and premier levels as well. We have had many adults removed from games (baseball is a very serious sport here and tends to have the most agressive parents) due to their actions in the stands and upon entering the field of play.

This parent saw his child getting hurt while an adult did nothing to stop it. "That's Hockey" is almost a rub, so Junta was already agitated (fuming if it was me) then to be sucker punched...well, he lost all control. His size wasn't on his mind. I do wonder how many blows were actually thrown, but I don't thnk anyone REALLY knows. As a side note- You take a guy who is smaller but works out and is in shape, size doesn't matter as much.
I don't know if the sentence fit the crime. I'm glad there was a sentence. At the rate this kind of "rage" is growing, I'm just surprised something like this hasn't happened sooner.

I admit to being one of those parents that gets rather emotional about team sports. I've even yelled (from the stands) at a ref or two and kids playing dirty soccer or basketball. My kids have been playing team sports all their lives. If you see your child cry because of a coach, another parent or player, it can bring out THE most indescribable anger! No, I never beat anyone up, but I sure wanted to slap a few people...because of my KIDS!
My decision was to NOT attend certain games and hear the results after it was over. Maybe the jurors could relate to those feelings on some level.

lionlove · #13 01-13-2002, 12:38 AM

Living in MA, this trial is ALL over our local news, newspapers, watercooler chatter, talk shows etc for the past several months. It is a sad case.

During the trial, some people started to place blame on Costin rather than Junta. I think it is really pretty low to blame a dead guy. As one newscaster put it, "would you blame a rape victim for dressing provacativly?"

Optimist Prime · #14 01-13-2002, 01:11 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by lionlove
Living in MA, this trial is ALL over our local news, newspapers, watercooler chatter, talk shows etc for the past several months. It is a sad case.

During the trial, some people started to place blame on Costin rather than Junta. I think it is really pretty low to blame a dead guy. As one newscaster put it, "would you blame a rape victim for dressing provacativly?"

That is not the same thing that all.

justamom · #15 01-13-2002, 09:23 AM

I thought he was already sentenced, but read today, sentencing is later this month.(DUH) The paper wrote,"Even Gus Costin, the victim's father, said he had kind words for Junta before the vedict Friday. "I told him,' Idon't hate you. I forgive you.' What he did was terrible, but I don't think he meant to do it."
I wonder how much time he will get.