HOWELL — Parents and referees involved in a post-high school ice hockey match brawl will get the chance to work out their dispute through mediation.
Howell Municipal Court Judge Susan Schroeder-Clark ordered the referees and parents to mediation in an attempt to avoid prosecution or a trial.
In sending the matter to mediation, Schroeder-Clark allowed the charges and counter charges to proceed.
“I can tell you that this matter involving this high school hockey assault and the allegations surrounding this I certainly found them very troubling,” Schroeder-Clark said. “Based upon my review of the case, I feel it’s in everybody’s best interest to send this to mediation.”
The Feb. 7 fracas at Ice World in Howell was a spillover from one referee’s alleged treatment of the mother of a hockey player, who was banging on the glass during the Howell-Manalapan matchup, police have said.
The husband of the woman confronted the referee in a small changing area of the hockey rink and assaulted him, according to Dave Brown, one of the two referees involved.
Howell hockey brawl won’t lead to criminal charges, police say
Robert Dovenero contends Brown used obscene language toward the players and a hockey-mom before she was ejected, but Brown has denied using foul language.
Brown and his refereeing partner, Sal Bianco Sr., have said Dovenero and Anthony Gallicchio physically assaulted them. Bianco claimed Gallicchio, demanding to know which referee used obscenities toward his wife, burst into the changing room and began punching Brown. Shortly after that, Dovenero came into the room and grabbed both referees by the throat, Bianco has said.
Gallicchio and Dovenero, who claims he was the “peacemaker” during the altercation, insist they did not attack anyone.
After the brief court appearance, Brown’s attorney Richard Lomurro said he welcomes the mediation but is troubled that no criminal charges have been filed, in part, to deter other parents or players from condoning the alleged actions of the parents.
“Nobody’s talking about what happened and how it was possible that it happened and how is it not going to happen again,” Lomurro said.
He said mediation, which will be handled by retired Municipal Court Judge Mark Apostolou, would most likely start in a month and would continue until either the parties agree on a resolution or they agree they can’t resolve the matter without a trial.
All the men are charged with simple assault. Lomurro said the fact that the attacks occurred while children under the age of 15 were present can elevate those charges to an indictable offense. The charges are also escalated when the victim is acting on behalf of a school or is an employee of a school.
Howell Township police said there wasn’t enough evidence for them to charge anyone criminally, but both sides filed their own charges and counter-charges in municipal court.
However, Lomurro said he has “independent witnesses” to at least part of the attack “and yet no arrests have been made.”
Brown, who has refereed for 30 years for the International Hockey League, the National Hockey League and high school sports, said he is no longer officiating for now because of the emotional and physical toll the incident has taken on him.
Dovenero, who represented himself, left court without commenting. Mitchell Ansell, the attorney who represented Gallicchio, declined to comment.
MaryAnn Spoto may be reached at mspoto@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @MaryAnnSpoto. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
