A judge postponed the trial for Scott Hayes, the alleged shooter in a violent incident at a pro-Israel protest in September, at a hearing on Tuesday at Newton District Court.
The trial was already postponed at another scheduled hearing last month as both sides said they needed more time for discovery of evidence. Hayes faces charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.
A lawyer for the prosecution said he had interviewed state police officers since the last hearing but that he was waiting for lab reports on gun identification.
A lawyer for Hayes requested that the state provide the criminal record of Caleb Gannon, the man whom Hayes allegedly shot.
The trial follows an incident in September when Gannon, a Newton resident, yelled at protesters at a pro-Israel demonstration on Washington Street, then charged across the street and tackled Hayes.
Hayes and the other pro-Israel protesters struggled to restrain Gannon, then Gannon was shot.
Hayes, a Framingham resident who is not Jewish, legally owned the fired gun.
Protesters—both those in support of Hayes and those advocating for his conviction—stood out in front of the courthouse on Tuesday.
Susan Mirsky, one of the protesters present, said she thinks Hayes should be held accountable for allegedly shooting Gannon.
“I know it’s not against the law to carry a gun, but bringing it to any kind of political gathering is really crazy, and that he shot Caleb is a crime,” Mirsky said.
Yuri Kazakevich, a protester who said he has demonstrated with Hayes, said Hayes did not deserve to be attacked in September and that he does not deserve to be charged with a crime.
“He was always like, ‘Guys, calm down, guys don’t engage,’ and he never engaged, and he was brutally attacked,” Kazakevich said.
The second postponement of the trial disappointed Kazakevich.
“It’s more stress, obviously, for Scott and everybody, because we want the charges dismissed,” Kazakevich said. “It’s just, the wheels are working slowly.”
But Gannon’s plight also deserves attention, according to protester Eileen Kurkoski.
“We get all this exposure about Hayes being okay and having the right to defend himself, so it’s unequal in media, and even in the court because they haven’t been able to get records about Gannon,” Kurkoski said.
Hayes is due back in court for his trial on Jan. 27.
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