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Originally Posted by dissentowner
He also claimed Gritty punched his son in the back as hard as he could. I am pretty sure if a big grown man punches a 13 year old in the back as hard as he can that is going to create a hell of a show. The kid would drop, people would be freaking out and yet nobody saw this? Come on...
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That's the thing that stood out to me the most
I wanted to believe the Dad, but reading about it now... yikes...
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As Brandon walked away, Gritty got out of his chair, “took a running start," and “punched my son as hard as he could," Greenwell said Wednesday.
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But no witnesses ....whaaaaa?
But then...
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After the alleged punch, Greenwell emailed officials at Comcast Spectacor, first complaining of the “lousy picture” with the mascot who didn’t look at the camera. Then he raised the “more serious and disappointing” concern.
“I know it was not correct for my son to harmlessly tap him on his head but for a Flyers employee to get [sic] throw a full punch at someone with his back turned and hurt a 13 year old boy is assault, unprofessional and unacceptable for your organization,” he wrote.
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...which is an odd way to approach their mascot taking a running punch at your child. I think that would have been handled right on the spot if I witnessed it. Odd that a bunch of PEOPLE FROM PHILLY didn't have any response or seem to notice the assault... and that it was item #2 in his concerns with Gritty...
His specific requests from the Flyers for violently assaulting his child also seem a bit light if I'm honest
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Greenwell suggested the Flyers show his son on the giant scoreboard or let him into the locker room to meet players and get autographs. The company offered to sit Brandon on the players’ bench during warm-ups before a future game.
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...and things were going fine between him and the Flyers re: compensation until...
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The email exchange soured when Greenwell and Kleinman disagreed on what was said during a December phone call. Greenwell claimed Kleinman told him that Gritty admitted he hit Brandon. Kleinman denied saying that.
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To me, the Flyers response I've seen was as PR-speak 'ok dude...' as you can get...
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“I have investigated your allegations and cannot identify anyone who witnessed the incident as you described it,” wrote Laurie Kleinman, vice president of risk management at Comcast Spectacor, in a Dec. 5 email to Greenwell. “It is unfortunate that you and your son had a bad experience at our Gritty Photo Event. Therefore, we are offering an opportunity to discuss a creative way to restore your son’s love of the Philadelphia Flyers.”
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We can't find anything or anyone to verify that your son was the victim of a flying assault from an adult - but we're sorry you had a bad time
Let's a) end this e-mail chain and b) keep a fan happy
Pretty tough to defend the guy...