Hyannis man charged
after alleged assault with tree branch
b
Source: Cape Cod
Times
BARNSTABLE — A 37-year-old Hyannis man pleaded not guilty Thursday in
Barnstable District Court to assault charges after allegedly striking another
man repeatedly with a tree branch.
The alleged attack occurred Sunday at Grove and Louis streets in Hyannis,
according to a police report.
The victim told police he was walking home from Ocean State Job Lot when
James Oliver called out to him, the report says.
“I did not respond, I just kept walking because we had not been on good
terms,” the victim said, according to the report.
The victim said Oliver threatened him and began striking his face with a tree
branch about three feet long, continuing to assault him after he fell to the
ground, the report says.
The victim, whom police met at the Cape Cod Hospital emergency room just
before 2 p.m., had sustained lacerations and may have scarring, according to
the police report.
Oliver was charged with assault with a dangerous weapon and assault and battery
with serious bodily injury, according to court documents. He was arrested on
Thursday and a dangerousness hearing was held but his bail was set at $500,
court documents say. A pretrial hearing in the case is set for March 8.