A drunken “Jersey Shore” insult may have triggered a sucker punch to the side of the head that put a 53-year-old man into a coma outside Connie’s restaurant March 6.
At least that’s a scenario outlined in an arrest warrant application Derby police used to charge Anthony DeFala, 26, of Derby, with second-degree assault, a felony, and second-degree breach of peace, a misdemeanor.
DeFala is a former member of the city’s tax board.
Police also charged Richard Valenti, 27, of Derby, with two misdemeanors — second-degree breach of peace and third-degree assault, in connection to the assault.
Both men were arrested June 15.
They were arraigned Friday in Superior Court in Derby, where they entered not guilty pleas. Judge Karen Sequino ordered DeFala and Valenti to have no contact with the victim, Ronald Sabatini.
They are due back in court July 20.
Sabatini has filed a civil lawsuit against Connie’s, claiming adequate security wasn’t in place at the time of the assault and that Connie’s employees didn’t do anything to help him.
At the time of the beating, Connie’s was owned by Mayor Anthony Staffieri’s sons — Anthony and Paul — along with Jeffrey Hughes, younger brother of Ken Hughes, president of the Derby Board of Aldermen.
Days after the incident, Anthony and Paul Staffieri allegedly kicked Hughes out of the limited liability partnership that controlled the business. Hughes has since filed a lawsuit against his former business partners and the mayor.
What Happened?
The arrest warrant application contains statements from people who were in the bar, including Sabatini, his female companion Elaine Hanna, bar owner Anthony Staffieri and David Iacuone, an off-duty Derby police officer who was in the bar at the time of the incident.
The interviews provide slightly different perspectives on what may have transpired that night. The full warrant is posted at the end of this article.
Iacuone is friends with the defendants, the arrest warrant states.
The warrant also states that police have footage from two video cameras — one from outside Connie’s and another from Anita Dugatto’s Sunflower Dental care, which is on Elizabeth Street, just up from Connie’s.
Sabatini and Hanna arrived at the bar sometime around 12 a.m. and started drinking, according to the document.
DeFala and Valenti were there with a large group of friends.
Close to 2 a.m., the large group exits the bar, according to the warrant — and there’s a fracas in the street. One witness said that Sabatini and Hanna had been “mouthing off” to people inside the bar.
Iacuone told police that a number of people were arguing with Sabatini and Hanna, and Hanna, who appeared to be intoxicated, kept saying “What’s this, Jersey Shore?” to the group of people outside the bar.
“Iacuone then reported seeing Richard Valenti run towards (Sabatini) and shove (Sabatini) with his right hand or forearm.”
Sabatini fell to the ground.
He got up and walked up Elizabeth Street, the off-duty cop told investigators. DeFala then walked up and punched Sabatini, Iacuone told police.
“Iacuone reported that as this situation was escalating, his intoxication limited his ability to act in his capacity as a police officer,” the arrest warrant states.
Witnesses said a number of other people were screaming at Sabatini.
Police believe that based on the serious nature of Sabatini’s injuries, DeFala walked up Elizabeth Street, behind Sabatini and blind-sided him with a punch.
The blow is not caught on camera, the warrant states, but DeFala is quickly seen checking out his hand for injuries, according to the document.
In addition, police recovered Sabatini’s tooth in the spot where DeFala is seen on the video.
Victim’s View
Sabatini suffered a number of serious injuries as a result of the incident, ranging from traumatic brain injury to broken ribs, according to the lawsuit he filed against Connie’s.
He was in a coma for several days.
Sabatini’s statement to police says that he and Hanna were at Archie Moore’s on Elizabeth Street when they decided to go up the road to Connie’s.
However, the kitchen was closed by the time they arrived at Connie’s.
“The next thing I remember is waking up at Yale-New Haven Hospital several days later,” Sabatini said.
Hanna, who accompanied him into Connie’s, gives a different story than other witnesses.
She said that a group of about five to eight “white kids” jumped Sabatini on Connie’s walkway.
“I do not know why, they said nothing, and I have no idea what led to this,” she said. “Two guys in this group jumped Ronald. One of the guys punched Ronald in the head and Ronald went right to the ground.”
Hanna said girls in the group began cheering for the beating to continue.
Hanna said she jumped in and tried to protect Sabatini’s head.
“ … and now I was being kicked,” she said.
Hanna said she pulled out a cell phone and told the group she was taping the attack.
“This worked and the group stopped,” she said.
In the arrest warrant, police mention that Hanna’s statement contradicts what the video cameras show.
In addition, the arrest warrant states that two witnesses interviewed by police — including a Connie’s manager who was in the bar but off duty at the time — gave conflicting statements to police.
However, it hasn’t been open for business since June 18.
Sabatini’s Lawsuit