Scott Hayes, the man who allegedly shot a man who tackled him in Newton Thursday night, will plead not guilty to charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.
The court dropped an additional charge against Hayes—violation of a constitutional right causing injury—even though Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan said Thursday night Hayes would receive that charge.
Hayes was released on $5,000 bail, with a curfew between 7:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. He is also not permitted to have contact with the alleged victim, who is still unidentified, possess any dangerous weapons, or enter the city of Newton.
The District Court set bail at $50,000/$5,000 cash Thursday night, according to a statement from the Newton Police Department (NPD).
He will still be allowed to travel through highways like I-95 and Route 128 that cut through Newton, for his work.
Newton police responded at 6:40 p.m. Thursday to a report of a disturbance near Washington Street and Harvard Street.
Video footage shows the unidentified man on the other side of the street, yelling at a small group of pro-Israel protesters across the street.
“You are defending genocide,” the man said.
He then ran through traffic across the street, tackling Hayes. In the scuffle between the man and the protesters, Hayes’ gun fired and a bullet struck the man who tackled him.
The man is now expected to survive his injuries, according to the NPD statement.
Yael Magen, an attorney for Hayes, spoke out against all kinds of political violence after the arraignment.
“It seems that it’s open season against the Jewish people or anyone who supports Israel, and that has to stop,” Magen said.
Hayes will return to court on Nov. 7.
The NPD, the Massachusetts District Attorney’s Office, and Massachusetts State Police detectives are still collecting and reviewing evidence from the incident, according to the NPD.
