April 04, 2019
Blue Mountain Resort/Facebook
Skis and snowboards sit on a sunny mountainside in central Pennsylvania.
A New Jersey doctor was found guilty of assaulting a 12-year-old boy at a ski resort on Valentine’s Day in 2016 after the boy accidentally snowboarded into the doctor’s 10-year-old son.
Samuel Caruthers, 47, was accused of repeatedly punching the 12-year-old boy and jabbing him with a ski pole after the collision at Mountain Creek Resort, according to the New Jersey Herald, and faced a five-count indictment.
The boy he assaulted reportedly suffered a rib contusion and a split lip when Caruthers punched him, and the incident picked up the "ski rage" catch phrase.
Caruthers was found guilty in New Jersey Superior Court on Wednesday of third-degree endangering the welfare of a child, simple assault, a disorderly persons offense, and fourth-degree unlawful possession of a weapon.
He was found not guilty on charges of third-degree aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and third-degree possession of a weapon for unlawful purpose, the charges relating to him using the ski pole to attack the 12-year-old.
Caruthers reportedly said during the trial that he didn’t realize how old the 12-year-old boy was, both because of the boy’s mustache and because he stood 5 feet 7 inches tall, according to the Herald.
George Daggett, Caruthers’ attorney, said Wednesday the only charge that should be able to stand is simple assault. Daggett is filing a motion to set aside the verdict, the Herald reports, and Daggett plans to file an appeal if the motion isn’t granted.
Caruthers is currently scheduled to be sentenced on May 24.
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