LA Firefighters Charged with Beating a Man for Handing Out Candy to Chatsworth Kids

Two Los Angeles Fire Department firefighters and a third defendant accused of attacking a young man who was handing out candy on Halloween pleaded not guilty today to assault charges.

One of the firefighters, 37-year-old Michael Anthony Vitar, is a former child actor who appeared in the 1993 film “The Sandlot,” portraying Benny “The Jet” Rodriguez, along with two “The Mighty Ducks” films.

Vitar, fellow firefighter Eric Carpenter, 38, and one of Carpenter’s neighbors, Thomas Molnar, 45, are each charged with one count of assault by means of force likely to cause great bodily injury.

Carpenter is accused of personally inflicting great bodily injury on the alleged victim.

According to prosecutors, Carpenter hosted a Halloween party at his Chatsworth home that was attended by Vitar and Molnar. They became upset when they saw a 22-year-old man, who was in the area visiting his grandmother, handing out candy to kids as he walked down a street, according to the District Attorney’s Office.

The trio ran after the man and jumped him, and Carpenter choked him, prosecutors allege.

A date is scheduled to be set March 3 for a hearing to determine if there is sufficient evidence to require the three to stand trial.

Carpenter faces up to seven years in prison if convicted, while Vitar and Molnar would face up to four years in prison.

Carpenter and Vitar were placed on paid leave pending the resolution of the criminal case, according to the LAFD.

City News Service