Local News
Scott Hayes pleaded not guilty to allegedly shooting a man who tackled him at a pro-Israel demonstration in Newton. Supporters of the alleged shooter have raised more than $200,000.
The Framingham man who pleaded not guilty to shooting a man who tackled him at a pro-Israel demonstration in Newton is garnering hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations to support his defense.
Scott Hayes, 47, was arrested Thursday at a demonstration near Washington and Harvard streets in Newton after a verbal altercation between him and a passerby turned physical. A 31-year-old Newton man shouted comments at demonstrators before running across the street and tackling Hayes to the ground, officials said.
Hayes allegedly shot the man during the altercation. The Boston Globe identified the man who was shot as Caleb Gannon. An Instagram account for Gannon includes links to help Gazan families and other pro-Palestinian posts.
Scott has posted on X about participating in pro-Israel demonstrations and decrying what he describes as anti-Semitism. In one post from May of this year, he posted a picture of a gun captioned “Hey Jew haters. Bring it.”
In a video apparently showing part of Thursday’s altercation, Gannon yells across the street at the protesters that they “are defending genocide.” The video then cuts to Gannon running across the street and jumping on someone who appears to be Hayes, who can be heard saying “grab my pistol.”
Hayes is charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. He was released on bail Friday and was ordered to stay away from Gannon, to maintain a daily home confinement between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m., to stay away from the city of Newton, and not to possess any weapon. His license to carry was also suspended.
Officials said they are pursuing criminal charges against Gannon. Newton police have filed assault and battery charges against him, pending probable cause.
GoFundMe raises more than $200,000 for Hayes
A fundraiser started for Hayes has raised more than $231,000 out of a $270,000 goal as of Sunday evening , according to a GoFundMe organized by an anti-Semitism advocacy group based in Marblehead. The fundraiser identifies Hayes as a veteran who is not Jewish, but “has been defending the Jewish people and its right for self determination and governance all across Boston.”
The fundraiser said Hayes was “wrestling” with Gannon “when a gun went off.” Hayes also provided emergency medical treatment, the GoFundMe said.
“He now needs help as this turmoil entered his life,” the post said.
Hayes’s lawyer did not return a request for comment Sunday evening, but CBS News reported that his attorney called it a “textbook case of self-defense.”
The Anti-Defamation League’s New England chapter said they were concerned about the timing of Hayes’s charges. An assistant district attorney told the court last week that the case is “evolving” while they gathered video and interviewed witnesses.
“Reports that charges were immediately filed prior to completion of the investigation are concerning. Protests should not subject anyone to violence,” the ADL chapter wrote on social media. “We encourage Newton Police and the Middlesex District Attorney to conduct a thorough investigation of the entire incident.”
Gannon is expected to survive, Ryan said on Friday. Her office did not return a request for an update on his condition on Sunday.
Boston.com Today
Sign up to receive the latest headlines in your inbox each morning.