Matthew Clemmens, 21, is accused of a unique criminal act that is also uniquely disgusting. He was arrested after allegedly vomiting on purpose on an 11-year-old girl at a Phillies game.
Off-duty Easton Police Capt. Michael Vangelo insists that Clemmens stuck his fingers down his throat to accomplish the vile act and then slugged him in the head several times.
He says that Clemmens and his friend were swearing loudly from the start of the game — prompting his 15-year-old daughter to ask them to stop. That allegedly led to spitting by the men — hitting his daughter. Clemmens’ friend was escorted from the stadium after they complained. Vangelo says that Clemmens then said loudly that he was going to be sick and put his fingers down his throat — vomiting on the family.
He has been charged with simple assault, aggravated assault, harassment, resisting arrest and related offenses. That should guarantee a long hiatus from future Phillies games.
This would also be an excellent case for civil litigation — though he looks judgment proof in the mug shot. Nevertheless, this is as good a case of intentional infliction of emotional distress as well as battery that you could come up with.
For the full story, click here.
Oh come on!
They have to be at least 16 before you can vomit on them.
Anyone knows that!
!?O~*
worth checking out:
http://blog.prorumors.com/2010/04/rumors/eyewitness-account-of-the-vomitting-phillies-fan/
http://www.philly.com/dailynews/local/20100417_Condemnation_erupts_over_ballpark_barf_case.html?viewAllLatest=y&text=#comments
Clemmens’ uncle (who was not there) claims that Clemmens was choking on his own vomit and covering his mouth with his hands to try to keep the vomit in, but it flew out. The uncle also points out the improbability of someone attacking with their fists while they are vomiting (induced or not).
The uncle is probably right and the off-duty policemen are probably liars. I wonder if we will ever get the truth.
I don’t assume. I would like to hear from witnessses who are not popos or families of popos. What I really wish is that a video will emerge. Badges could be lost (or not).
oops
because his assuption paints the cop in a bad light.
Buddy,
I think you are a little biased. You have to give credit where credit is due. There were tens of thousands of fans at the stadium. If the cop was in the wrong don’t you think people there would be people discrediting the story.
I also find it interesting how Buddy can make such an assumption and nobody here says anything because it is
Bdaman @ 9:16 am: “I think he should be given an HIV test. IF positive, he should be charged with attempted murder.”
There you go again…spreading fear and misinformation.
“Sweat, Feces, Vomit – are NOT considered infectious. HIV has never been found in these materials. The only possible risk would be if there was blood present.”
http://www.mnaidsproject.org/learn/transmission.htm
Sounds like another accomplishment for Mr. Clemmens to list on his resume, since I get the idea he has a lot of experience being shit faced drunk.
another plausible possibility is that Mr. Clemmens neith spit nor vomited, and that the off-duties simply beat him up for verbally taunting them.
Looking around at the media coverage (surprisingly extensive) I cannot believe how few media organs are viewing the improbable story with any skepticism whatsoever.
I share seasons tickets to the Washington Nationals, and have to say that going to Phillies games here in D.C. is becoming a more and more unpleasant experience (and not just because of the score). The Phillies fans take bus aramdas down 95 from Philadelphia to D.C., which in itself would not be bad, except that it gives them the opporunity to start drinking on the bus (which often provides kegs of beer), and they are totally wasted even before the game starts. They are without question the loudest, borish, most obscene and obnoxious fans of any visiting team I have ever experienced (and I grew up in the Boston area). It has become a kind of “culture” for Philly fans to be obnoxious and obscene, and they revel in that image, making life miserable for everyone else at the game. No more Philly games for me and my family.
An off-duty policeman going off and wailing on a sick, rude, drunk guy because purposely spit on or somewhere in the vicinity of his friend’s daughter seems like another plausible possibility.
If the guy spit and one or the other of the off-duty policemen wailed on him for that, then they would need to go to jail too.
However, if they make up an unlikely story about him purposefully vomiting and then attacking with his fists, then the offduty policemen don’t have to go to jail, so long as the on duty policeman is willing to buy their story (or maybe even come up with it for them). we cannot be sure that this is what happens, but it seems likelier than the official story here.
Looks like he was given a perma-wink as a reward …
That’s not the way to apply for the mascot job, Matty!
from the article:
Other fans – including another off-duty Easton cop – intervened when Clemmens started landing haymakers on Vangelo, who relied on otherworldly restraint during the assault.
“I kept thinking, ‘If I get arrested, my kids will be alone here,’ ” he noted.
Vanore said that Clemmens ended up tussling with Philly police and “threw up on one officer.”
I am going to go out on a limb here and guess that this is not how it really happened. An off-duty policeman showing otherworldly restraint while being punched seems improbable. An off-duty policeman going off and wailing on a sick, rude, drunk guy because his drinking made him throw up somewhere in the vicinity of his daughter seems super-duper-probable.
Also, it seems improbable that he purposely threw up on another police officer during the “tussle.” Not only would that be difficult to do, but it would not seem to be something that would be tried as a defensive maneuver once the punches started flying. On the other hand, if he was sick from drinking, then the 2d instance of vomiting makes a lot of sense.
IOW, I smell conspiracy here.
I think he should be given a HIV test. If positive, he should be charged with attempted murder. Bastard
I wonder if it had not been voluntarily induced if the resulting charge would be the same?
There have been one or two games I would have liked to barfed at and probably did. I took the Babe Ruth approach to watching baseball…..