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- Dec 27, 2014
Two teens accused of Frederick Fair assault that killed a man will be detained; victim was from Mount Airy
The man who died after an assault at the Great Frederick Fair last week that officials are calling unprovoked has been identified as John Marvin Weed, 59, of Mount Airy.
Weed was assaulted late Friday afternoon and died Saturday afternoon after being transported to the Maryland Shock Trauma.
The Frederick County Sheriff’s Office on Monday said the investigation is ongoing.
Frederick County State’s Attorney Charlie Smith on Monday said during a news conference that two juveniles who are facing charges, one 15 years old and one 16 years old, will be held in detention in Montgomery County until their next court date in October.
At this point, the 16-year-old could be charged with second-degree assault and the 15-year-old could be charged with manslaughter, Smith said.
“We see no facts in this particular case that would lead anyone to believe that there was an intent to kill, an intent to murder the victim,” he said Monday afternoon.
Smith said the teenagers assaulted Weed after asking him for a dollar. He said officials are still investigating and conducting interviews to determine the exact nature of the incident.
He said the first punch from one of the teenagers was not the fatal blow. Smith said officials have no reason at this time to believe that the incident was a hate crime, nor do officials believe the teens were playing the “knockout game” – a stunt in which a person, typically a teenager, sucker-punches another in an attempt to knock them out.
Smith said more people could be facing criminal charges in the incident.
He said Maryland law does not automatically call for the teenage suspects to be charged as adults, but that his office is going to look at getting a waiver to do so.
“I think the public would want someone punished for causing someone else’s death, even a reckless one," Smith said.
Taylor Soifer, a 23-year-old medical assistant who lives in Frederick, said she has gone to the Great Frederick Fair almost every year since she was 8 years old. It’s something to look forward to, she said.
“It’s such a big event for this town, and it’s so sad to see it turning into such a negative place,” Soifer said. “It’s all anyone is talking about. I haven’t gone anywhere today without it being brought up.”
George Kirk, also 23 and a Frederick native, said he was upset that this incident might color peoples’ perceptions of the fair. Kirk said that, since he was perhaps no older than 8, his parents would drop him off at the fair with some cash and tell him a time to meet them back at the entrance.
The assault and Weed’s death will “make it harder for people, going forward, to enjoy the same experience that I enjoyed,” Kirk said.
The man who died after an assault at the Great Frederick Fair last week that officials are calling unprovoked has been identified as John Marvin Weed, 59, of Mount Airy.
Weed was assaulted late Friday afternoon and died Saturday afternoon after being transported to the Maryland Shock Trauma.
The Frederick County Sheriff’s Office on Monday said the investigation is ongoing.
Frederick County State’s Attorney Charlie Smith on Monday said during a news conference that two juveniles who are facing charges, one 15 years old and one 16 years old, will be held in detention in Montgomery County until their next court date in October.
At this point, the 16-year-old could be charged with second-degree assault and the 15-year-old could be charged with manslaughter, Smith said.
“We see no facts in this particular case that would lead anyone to believe that there was an intent to kill, an intent to murder the victim,” he said Monday afternoon.
Smith said the teenagers assaulted Weed after asking him for a dollar. He said officials are still investigating and conducting interviews to determine the exact nature of the incident.
He said the first punch from one of the teenagers was not the fatal blow. Smith said officials have no reason at this time to believe that the incident was a hate crime, nor do officials believe the teens were playing the “knockout game” – a stunt in which a person, typically a teenager, sucker-punches another in an attempt to knock them out.
Smith said more people could be facing criminal charges in the incident.
He said Maryland law does not automatically call for the teenage suspects to be charged as adults, but that his office is going to look at getting a waiver to do so.
“I think the public would want someone punished for causing someone else’s death, even a reckless one," Smith said.
Taylor Soifer, a 23-year-old medical assistant who lives in Frederick, said she has gone to the Great Frederick Fair almost every year since she was 8 years old. It’s something to look forward to, she said.
“It’s such a big event for this town, and it’s so sad to see it turning into such a negative place,” Soifer said. “It’s all anyone is talking about. I haven’t gone anywhere today without it being brought up.”
George Kirk, also 23 and a Frederick native, said he was upset that this incident might color peoples’ perceptions of the fair. Kirk said that, since he was perhaps no older than 8, his parents would drop him off at the fair with some cash and tell him a time to meet them back at the entrance.
The assault and Weed’s death will “make it harder for people, going forward, to enjoy the same experience that I enjoyed,” Kirk said.
