Hot-tub assault suspect to get alcohol treatment

The ambush came as four teenagers relaxed one summer night in a hot tub outside a Medford home.

Police allege that Andre Hutchinson, a captain of the Shawnee High School football team, and two others arrived and began punching and attacking them. Hutchinson, Mark Manco, and Shane Ferris were arrested within days of the July 22 incident and charged with assault.

Now the charges against the trio - all adults at the time - could be dismissed under a New Jersey law that allows defendants in certain cases to receive treatment for alcohol abuse in lieu of prosecution.

A Medford municipal judge last week decided to stay the charges against Hutchinson, 18, after receiving a medical evaluation showing the high school senior met the program's criteria. The law states that to be eligible, a defendant must be examined by a physician and found to be "an alcoholic who would benefit by treatment."

While set to participate in a months-long treatment program, Hutchinson continues to play football for Shawnee, one of the area's top teams.

School officials said they could not discuss an individual student due to confidentiality laws. They acknowledged that while athletes are prohibited from using alcohol in-season, such policies don't apply beyond that term.

"If a student gets in trouble out of their season, we don't have a policy . . . and the same holds true for the summertime," said Shawnee principal Matthew Campbell.

Gary Daniels, Hutchinson's attorney, declined to comment, noting the pending case.

Judge Alfred Faxon's position drew a stern rebuke in court from prosecutor George Morris, who described approval of the stay as a "farce on the justice system."

Those arrested for a disorderly-persons offense or violating a municipal ordinance, and not also charged with a misdemeanor, can have their charges put on hold under the Alcohol Treatment and Rehabilitation Act if the arresting officer believes they are intoxicated.

The law states the defendant can then request an examination by a physician to determine whether he has an alcohol problem and would be helped by treatment. Once that determination is made, and the court grants approval, the defendant enrolls in treatment. The court dismisses the charges after the defendant successfully completes the program.

Morris argued in court that there was no evidence to show Hutchinson had been intoxicated at the time of the incident, for which he was arrested 11/2 days later. A case report says the assault was not related to alcohol.

The medical evaluation is not a public record, according to Medford.

Noting Hutchinson's evaluation, Faxon said he didn't have a lot of leeway under the law.

Former Shawnee students Manco and Ferris - who police said were 19 and 18 at the time of the incident, respectively - also are trying to receive a stay of their charges under the act and are due back in court next week.

A Medford police officer reported being dispatched just after midnight on July 22 over accusations of an assault while Justin Brooks, Charles Kelchner, Michela Cataldo, and Jessica Connors were in a hot tub.

According to their statements to police, Brooks and Kelchner, then 18, were dragged out of the hot tub and continuously struck with closed fists by former classmates Ferris, Manco, and Hutchinson, apparently over a dispute regarding Ferris' ex-girlfriend.

Brooks and Kelchner were treated at a local hospital. Cataldo went to the hospital that night for unrelated injuries.

Warrants were issued for the arrest of the three men, who later posted the $5,000 bail.

Attending the recent hearing was Mindy Brooks, Justin Brooks' mother. The Medford Lakes resident said her son, who had played football with Hutchinson, received 10 stitches above his eye and still has a scar there. He started his freshman year this fall at Rutgers University.

She maintains Hutchinson was the least guilty, because her son said he apologized during the alleged attack and tried to get the others to stop.

Mindy Brooks said that she did not want to see the defendants in jail or ruin their lives, but that she wanted them to accept more responsibility.

"I feel like nobody is looking out for my kid," she said.