A Massachusetts man is facing serious criminal charges, including attempted murder, after allegedly holding a 21-year-old man (who was on crutches at the time) underwater during a dispute at Sandy Beach on earlier this week. Steven Dana, 70, was arrested at his home following the violent altercation.
According to Hopkinton Deputy Chief of Police Scott van Raalten, Dana is charged with attempt to murder, two counts of strangulation/suffocation, and assault and battery on a disabled person.
Altercation at Sandy Beach
Hopkinton police were dispatched to Lake Maspenock’s Sandy Beach on Lakeshore Drive at approximately 6:55 p.m. following reports of an active fight. Investigators determined the confrontation began over the use of the lake. The sole boat ramp, located on Lakeshore Drive between Hopkinton and Milford, is restricted to Hopkinton residents between Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends. The 21-year-old victim, Matthew Duffy, was jet skiing with a group of friends—including one who is a town resident—when Dana allegedly became enraged.
According to video footage, Dana wanted the group of young men to leave the area and a verbal altercation ensued. He argued that he was tired of hearing the jet ski, but when Duffy said, “What are you going to do, shoot me?” Dana came down to the 21-year-old on crutches and got in his face. The incident escalated when Dana slapped Duffy across the face. The two men then struggled into the water, where Dana can be seen aggressively holding Duffy underwater until the victim’s friends intervened and pulled the 70-year-old off.
Duffy told CBS News:
He tackled me into the water, then we were fighting, and then he shoved my head under and was not letting me breathe until my friend came up and pulled him off me. I just knew I couldn’t use either of my arms or my leg as they were both broken and it was just praying that he let go or my friends pull him off of me.
I’m really glad that they got him right away. He did say that he lived by the lake and he was very annoyed with jet skis for some reason. A lot of people think they should be banned even though we don’t bother people.”
Duffy is currently recovering from a severe motorcycle accident that occurred in March, which left him with broken arms, a broken leg, and a broken pelvis.
Despite the severity of the struggle, both Dana and Duffy declined medical treatment at the scene. Dana was arraigned at Framingham District Court on Thursday. During a subsequent court appearance on Friday, a judge ruled that Dana did not pose a danger to the public and permitted his release on bail.
Police Response
Deputy Chief van Raalten called the entire incident “senseless” in a press release:
“This is an incident of senseless violence that could have had tragic results, and we treat matters like this with the utmost seriousness. The Hopkinton Police Department asks that residents contact the proper authorities to investigate incidents that involve the enforcement of the town’s bylaws rather than taking matters into their own hands. I want to praise our responding and investigating officers, including Sergeant Cody Normandin, Officer Sean McKeon and Officer Noah Buentello for their diligent and professional response on Wednesday evening, as well as our communication department, which fielded the calls from witnesses and relayed accurate and descriptive information to the responding officers.
Our goal during an investigation is to obtain the clearest picture of the incident so that we can understand the circumstances, which is often difficult given the heightened emotions of the parties involved. Our responding officers did an outstanding job remaining professional while navigating this investigation. There is no place for unnecessary violence in Hopkinton.”
As a lake resident in Wisconsin and someone who fishes regularly, it’s quite shocking how protective and downright insane people can get over the water and water access. I’ve see countless instances of homeowner accosting anglers for fishing near their docks, which they are perfectly allowed to do, and in some cases, those encounters have turned violent as well. BIG time hall monitor energy from grown adults.
At the same time, Duffy said “you’re not gonna do sh*t,” and Dana DID do some sh*t. Some ridiculous, stupid, and illegal sh*t, I’m not condoning that at all, but perhaps if you’re hobbling around on crutches because of a motorcycle accident, you shouldn’t be challenging crazy old men like that? I’d like to think both sides learned something this week, and thankfully nobody was seriously injured. That being said, Dana is probably gonna spend some of his golden years in jail, and over what? Patrolling the lake?
As the officer said, “senseless” is spot on right here…
