Note to congressional recruits: It’s generally not a good idea to be present during a barroom brawl, even as an innocent bystander.
But that’s the situation Manchester, N.H., Mayor Frank Guinta finds himself in after he went to a bar and found himself watching the aftermath of a heated fight that left one of his friends with a badly broken leg. Guinta didn't immediately report the incident to police.
Guinta is one of the House Republicans’ prized recruits and has already begun his campaign against Rep. Carol Shea-Porter (D-N.H.).
“Police are investigating a recent bar fight at a city club involving an alderman, a state representative and Mayor Frank Guinta, and which left a man with a leg that relatives say was broken in seven places,” the weekly Manchester Express reports on its front page.
“Caught in the middle of it all was Guinta, who everyone agrees was not involved in the fight but is now being criticized by [the injured man's] family for not immediately reporting it to police.”
The article reports that Guinta left the scene while the injured man, Thomas English, was getting treatment from an EMT. Guinta told the paper that he didn’t see the fight and didn’t realize the extent of English’s injuries — and only found out later that English required reconstructive surgery to recover. After he later heard how serious the injury was, Guinta said he immediately called police and gave them a witness statement.
The police are currently investigating whether to press charges in the case.
Republicans have been bullish on Guinta’s prospects against Shea-Porter because of his fiscal record as mayor of Manchester. Republicans have also touted his leadership in the community, giving him brand-name identification in the district.
This incident, however, will likely get him a lot of unwelcome media attention — and provides Democrats with some early, fun fodder to use against him in a campaign.
UPDATE: Guinta spokesman Michael Biundo issued the following response: “Mayor Guinta accompanied a friend who was trying to help a troubled individual and left once this unfortunate situation was resolved. The Mayor has a strong record of assisting his friends and fellow residents of Manchester, and he hopes that Mr. English gets the help he needs."