The brother of Olympic figure skater Nancy Kerrigan is now facing manslaughter charges in the death of their father.
Mark Kerrigan, 45, stands accused of fighting with his elderly dad in a violent altercation that prosecutors say ultimately caused Daniel Kerrigan’s death on January 24th.
“We allege that the defendant’s violent reckless actions and complete disregard for his father’s safety and well-being endangered Daniel Kerrigan’s life and resulted in the substantial harm that led to his untimely death,” Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone said in a statement released by his office. “This defendant should have known that the cruel acts that he committed against his elderly father, including grabbing him by the neck with enough force to cause a fracture, were highly likely to result in substantial harm and endanger his father’s life. Compounding these tragic circumstances is the fact that we allege the altercation by the defendant began because he wasn’t allowed to use the family telephone late that night, a seemingly trivial issue that we allege triggered the defendant’s drunken rage and led to his committing the malicious acts that led to the death of his elderly father.”
According to prosecutors, the events leading up to the elder Kerrigan’s death started early in the evening when Mark Kerrigan argued with an unnamed female at the family home.
Stoneham police responded to a 911 call after she called for help because Mark Kerrigan allegedly would not allow her to leave.
Daniel Kerrigan, 70, returned home to help calm the situation and Stoneham police left after speaking with all the parties.
Over the next six hours, allege prosecutors, the defendant started to drink liquor and argue with his parents over the use of the phone. Mark Kerrigan had been calling the unnamed woman, leaving over a dozen messages on her cell phone.
Prosecutors say Daniel Kerrigan refused to allow further access to the phone causing his son to became angry and aggressive.
According to a statement released by the District Attorney’s office:
“Sometime after midnight, the defendant came into his parent’s bedroom screaming obscenities and yelling about the telephone not working. The victim and his wife went downstairs to the kitchen in an attempt to talk to their son. The defendant then allegedly engaged in a heated argument with the victim, which escalated to a violent physical altercation where the defendant allegedly pushed, grabbed and shoved the victim, resulting in several pictures falling off the wall. The defendant then allegedly forcibly grabbed the victim around the neck, causing a compression fracture to the left thyroid cartilage of his larynx, and the victim fell to the kitchen floor onto his back, unconscious.
The defendant’s mother then called 911 and during her recorded call for help, the defendant is heard screaming obscenities at his father and yelling at him.”
When first responders got to the scene the elder Kerrigan was unconscious.
According to prosecutors, Mark Kerrigan tried to hide a bottle of scotch and refused to obey police orders. Obviously intoxicated, say authorities, Kerrigan fought and swore at the officers telling police that his father was “faking it.”
Daniel Kerrigan was rushed to Winchester Hospital and pronounced dead an hour later. The Chief Medical Examiner determined that Kerrigan died from cardiac dysrhythmia, a condition brought on by a violent physical altercation that resulted in a fracture to his larynx.
The Kerrigan family has been standing by Mark Kerrigan and released the following statement through their attorney today:
“We are deeply disappointed at the continued prosecution of Mark Kerrigan. We disagree with the decision to indict and look forward to the facts being considered by an impartial jury. The Kerrigan family continues to believe that he is not responsible for the death of their beloved Daniel Kerrigan. Mark Kerrigan has been living at home supporting and caring for his mother and is in complete compliance with all conditions of his pre-trial release and we see no reason that the situation should change.”
Mark Kerrigan is scheduled to be arraigned on the new manslaughter charge tomorrow morning.