Dr. Scott Filler Pleads Guilty
Posted on 03/09/2011 10:48:36 AM PST by rawhide
A Decatur man accused of punching a 14-year-old girl in the face for running into his son on the slopes in Colorado has pleaded guilty to third-degree assault.
The Vail Daily reported Tuesday that the plea from 41-year-old Scott Filler, a renowned malaria expert, was for a misdemeanor stemming from the December incident at Beaver Creek Ski Resort.
Police reports say Filler thought the teen was skiing carelessly when she bumped into his 4-year-old son. Eagle County sheriff's deputies say that's when he jumped on the girl and hit her with his fist. The girl said she was swerving to avoid another skier.
District Attorney Mark Hurlbert says Filler was sentenced to anger management classes and restitution, the amount of which would be determined by the girl.
Prosecutors also sought community service, but Hurlbert says the judge fined Filler $500 instead.
Three witnesses told deputies they observed Filler punch girl between two and four times.
The ski instructor who pulled the Decatur man off the girl told deputies Filler punched her "at least four times, using a closed fist," sheriff's Lt. Mike McWilliam told the AJC. Two other witnesses said they observed Filler yell at the girl before landing two or three punches, the sheriff's office spokesman said.
Filler, charged with misdemeanor child abuse, told deputies he thought the girl was skiing carelessly and had seriously injured his son. The boy was not hurt, however, and Filler apologized. The girl was treated for minor injuries at a local medical center.
Her father requested charges be filed against Filler, who was banned for life from Vail's six ski resorts.
(Excerpt) Read more at ajc.com ...
Pretty much all of it.
Well said.
The "adult" is not to be trusted if he can't control his emotions. Beating a 14 y.o. for a minor dustup on a ski run does not describe an "adult", it describes a selfish, uncontrollable, bully.
There are many activities that are inherently dangerous with obvious risks involved, skiing is one of them. By all appearances, it appears the "adult" on scene is incapable of understanding that.
There is nothing in this story to indicate that the girl was "guilty of reckless endangerment", that is pure speculation and is not supported by the article.
If this thug was beating my son, the ski patrol would have been removing a corpse.
Dr. Scott Filler Pleads Guilty
BykrBayb, You’ve been here on FR for a while. By now I’m sure you’ve realized there are a number of posters who have had negative experiences with women, e.g., divorce, bad relationship, unruly teens, some of which may have ended in violence.
These newspaper articles are like inkblots. Some posters read into them and see all kinds of nefarious motives. You see a 14 year old girl learning to ski who bumps into another kid. Happens every day. They, however, see a 14 year old female punk who obviously was being irresponsible and deserved to be slapped.
Be glad you’re not married to them!
He is not going to jail. ~ SeeSac
I agree with rideharddiefast. He should get anger management in addition to a jail sentence, not in lieu of a jail sentence.
The cops, when they came, saw it my way and I got a "warning". But the warning didn't matter, if he ever laid a hand on my girls again he was going over the balcony. He never did.
Today my girls are are 35 and 39 and the same holds. Anybody lays a hand on them will answer to me.
You mean the one who had the "good" judgment to get revenge for a perceived injury (which later proved to be nonexistent), by repeatedly punching a little girl in the face? That adult?
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No danger of that.
While I don't know where (or even if) you ski, when I skied years ago, there was a huge difference between a "bunny slope" and a "beginner run". Bunny slopes are appropriate for 4-year-olds; beginner slopes are not.
From the first article linked in a post above:
...had been skiing on a beginner run
They should be just as glad. I'm not a little girl. I hit back.
Sorry, missed your statement that you ski 10-14 days a year. While I haven’t gone skiing in many years, I’m quite sure that the distinction between bunny slopes and beginner runs still exists. The article describes their being on a beginner run - a place that’s definitely not appropriate for 4-year-olds.
I agree with you. My only point is that punching a teenager who just ran over his toddler isn't quite as heinous as punching an innocent little girl. If she actually was a little girl, I would be the first to be calling for him to go to prison. But she's not a little girl, and she wasn't innocent in the matter.
Punching her was still wrong, and he was rightly punished for it. IMHO, his punishment is appropriate and fits his crime. Do you think he deserved to be punished more harshly?
Ain't that the truth! "Men" like that only marry women and girls who don't defend themselves or have anyone else to defend them.
As I typed your name for the first time today I realized you are NOT Biker Bob. Good grief, I always read your screen name quickly and thought you were a biker guy.
The term "bunny slope" is slang for "beginner run."
I thought a bunny slope is a very wide, barely inclined training area, often accessed by rope lines. But a beginer’s run is an actual run, marked by a blue circle and all?
Where are you getting your information? She was a 14 year old girl, and by all accounts was innocent of any wrong-doing. But even if the things you made up were true, he would still deserve jail time for violently assaulting a person.
Projection is a b!+*h, ain't it?
Look up the thread. Lots of poeple have.
I think he was sentenced appropriately in the absence of a history for this type of conduct.
I agree with you, and yet I've been called a "disgusting bully" by some people who appear to want to lock him up for life.
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