Paul Bissonnette’s attacker charged with aggravated assault

Paul Bissonnette’s attacker charged with aggravated assault

A man accused of attacking former Coyotes player and NHL analyst Paul Bissonnette was indicted last Tuesday. Sean Michael Daley was charged with “engaging in violent and disruptive behavior and injuring Bissonnette” while the victim’s “resistance was impaired,” Maricopa County Prosecutor Rachel Mitchell announced Tuesday.

The aggravated assault charge is a sixth-degree felony, the least serious. Daley was also charged with disorderly conduct in the first degree.

Three other people have been charged at the county level in the Nov. 24 attack on Bissonnette at a Houston’s restaurant in Scottsdale.

They were originally charged with misdemeanors by the city of Scottsdale, but those have since been dismissed. Felony charges have been filed with the Maricopa County District Attorney’s Office and are currently under review.

Daley was initially charged by Scottsdale police and the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office. He was charged with aggravated assault and forgery (possession of a forged instrument), both felonies. He was also charged with disorderly conduct.

How did Paul Bissonnette get into a fight at a Scottsdale restaurant?

Police said Bissonnette, who played for the Phoenix Coyotes from 2009 to 2014, tried to help management calm down three men who were arguing with Houston management by getting them to leave. According to police, the men then attacked Bissonnette “inside and outside” the restaurant around 7:30 p.m.

All three men were arrested and charged with assault and disorderly conduct. A total of six people were arrested in connection with the incident.

Bissonnette said he was trying to help management calm down a group of golfers who were arguing heatedly with restaurant management over where they could drink.

The former hockey player, who regularly visits the restaurant, said he approached the group after two of the men yelled at the manager and his assistant manager. Bissonnette accused the men of being drunk on his podcast Spittin’ Chiclets (explicit language).

“I go over, grab the guy’s arm and say, ‘Listen, buddy, if you keep harassing and attacking the staff here, we’re going to go outside and get in some trouble,” Bissonnette said on the podcast. “The moment I left my mouth, the guy next to him started throwing punches. And next thing you know, four guys attack me.”

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