SUPERIOR, Mont. (AP) — A man is facing an assault charge after Montana authorities say someone saw him throw a 13-year-old boy to the ground because the teenager didn’t remove his hat when the national anthem was played at a rodeo.
The boy was taken to a hospital in Spokane, but details about his condition were not released.
The witness told the Missoulian she was at the rodeo on Saturday when she heard a “pop” and saw the boy on the ground, bleeding from his ears. The assailant justified his actions by saying the boy “was disrespecting the national anthem so he had every right to do that,” Hennick said.
Curt James Brockway, 39, of Superior, Montana, made an initial court appearance Monday on a charge of assault on a minor. Prosecutors recommended his bail be set at $100,000.
Brockway is a registered violent offender after being convicted of a 2010 charge of assault with a weapon and receiving a 10-year suspended sentence.