Many sports critics say that the biggest difference between the New York Jets and the New York Giants is that the New York Giants don't make headlines off the football field.
Well, that has changed:
CBS News reports that The 22-year-old nephew of New York Giants owner John Mara, who is also named John Mara, has been charged with felony assault in Connecticut for allegedly hitting a person in the head with a bottle, severely injuring the person, during a New Year's Eve party.
CBS News also states that Mara was arrested by Fairfield police Friday and posted $150,000 bail. The Mount Kisco, N.Y., resident is scheduled to be arraigned on first-degree assault and breach of peace charges on March 8 in Bridgeport Superior Court.
According to CBS News "the victim, who hasn't been publicly identified, suffered life-threatening injuries that required immediate surgery," police said.
Mara's lawyer, William Dow, told The Associated Press on Monday that Mara will plead not guilty. He declined to comment on details of the allegations, but did say, "We're confident a jury will find him not guilty," Dow
Police say, according to CBS News, the arrest was the result of a two-month investigation and Mara turned himself in after learning that authorities had obtained an arrest warrant for him.
First-degree assault carries one to 20 years in prison upon conviction.
Mara, who is a senior anthropology and sociology major at the Jesuit School may also face sanctions by the university.
"In a situation like this, not only is a student subject to any civil action but there would be an investigation from the standpoint of the school and, pending the outcome, the student would be subject to the disciplinary code of the university," said university spokeswoman Martha Milcarek, according to CBS News.
In a statement issued on Monday, the New York Giants, speaking through a spokesman, said, the team and John Mara, president and chief executive officer of the Giants, had no comment on the arrest."
