NJ Bar Official Denies He Head-Butted a Convention Vendor
Did a New Jersey bar official head-butt a convention vendor? Or did the vendor physically menace the bar official?
Those allegations are at the center of dueling municipal court complaints filed by the two men that are scheduled for trial on July 28, the New Jersey Law Journal reports.
The vendor, Robert Kleeger of the Intelligence Group forensics company, alleges he was assaulted on May 18 during the state bar’s annual meeting in Atlantic City, the story says. According to the complaint, incoming state bar first vice president Ralph Lamparello grabbed Kleeger, “head-butting him into a wall for no reason.”
Lamparello, managing partner of Chasan Leyner & Lamparello in Secaucus, filed two complaints against Kleeger that accuse the vendor of physically menacing behavior and harassment.
Lamparello told the New Jersey Law Journal that he was leaving a hotel restaurant when he heard Kleeger mutter the word “asshole.” Thinking Kleeger was someone he knew, Lamparello said, he turned around to shake his hand. But Kleeger then threatened him, saying “I’m going to f— you up,” according to Lamparello’s account. Thinking Kleeger was going to hit him, Lamparello says he pushed Kleeger away, against a wall.
“I was threatened with physical bodily injury by a stranger,” Lamparello told the publication.
