FRESH DIRT > Bryan Stow, a Santa Cruz resident and father of two, was severely beaten by two men on March 31, 2011, in the Dodgers Stadium parking lot in Los Angeles. Since then, the Stow family has sued the Dodgers and 13 of the team’s related entities while the two suspects charged in the beating remain behind bars.
The family sued the LA baseball team and related entities alleging that security cutbacks, free-flowing alcohol, and the facilities, such as the poor lighting in the parking lot, contributed to the beating. Dodger owner Frank McCourt is defending the Dodgers and the stadium as his legal team attempts to reduce the breadth of the lawsuit, which they claim the Stow family has brought against McCourt with “accusations that are irrelevant, superfluous, inflammatory, and prejudicial.”
McCourt’s legal team even wants descriptive language being used in the case by the prosecution to be changed. The prosecution has described the beating as “brutal and vicious” in papers filed with the court, but Jerome Jackson, a lawyer who is representing McCourt’s legal team, has stated that “although this is a tragedy, the Dodgers look forward to their day in court to defend the baseless accusations that have been made in this case.” In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, the Stow family attorney, Thomas Girardi, said that the allegations are not being made “loosely.”
In a Los Angeles courtroom on Wednesday, Aug. 10, Louie Sanchez, 28, and Marvin Norwood, 30, pleaded not guilty to charges of mayhem, assault, battery, and other charges. During their arraignment, the suspects did not look at each other and spoke only through their lawyers. Members from both of their families attended the hearing but did not comment to the media. Sanchez, who police believe led the assault, went on a rampage with Norwood at Dodger Stadium, attacking San Francisco Giants fans. While in the parking lot they encountered Stow and beat him unconscious.
Stow remains at San Francisco General Hospital where he recently underwent emergency surgery to release a buildup of fluid in his head that caused a seizure. As Stow’s family members update their website with his recovery progress, hospital officials said he remains in serious condition.
