Woman dies in celebration

LoKyBuckeye · #1 (**permalink**) 10-22-2004, 01:56 AM

Woman dies from injuries suffered in Boston celebration

Oct. 21, 2004
SportsLine.com wire reports

BOSTON -- A 21-year-old college student died Thursday of a head injury after a clash between police and a crowd of Boston Red Sox fans celebrating their team's victory over the New York Yankees in the streets outside Fenway Park.

Victoria Snelgrove, a journalism major at Emerson College, was shot in the eye by a projectile fired by an officer on crowd-control duty. The nature of the projectile was not immediately identified but the weapons are meant to be non-lethal.

During a news conference carried live on local television stations, Boston police commissioner Kathleen O'Toole expressed the department's sympathies to Snelgrove's family and said the agency "accepts full responsibility for the death of Victoria Snelgrove."

"The Boston Police Department is devastated by this tragedy. This terrible event should never have happened," O'Toole said.

Snelgrove was among 16 people hurt in Boston's Kenmore Square neighborhood early Thursday morning, after thousands of fans took to the streets to celebrate the Red Sox winning the American League pennant. She died at Brigham and Women's Hospital later in the day.

"It appears from evidence we have reviewed thus far that Tori was killed when she was hit in the eye by a projectile fired as officers tried to control mobs outside the ballpark," O'Toole said. "Designated officers were equipped with less-lethal systems that use projectiles designed to break upon impact, dousing the target with (pepper-like) spray."

O'Toole and Mayor Thomas Menino pledged to fully investigate the incident.

Snelgrove's father, Rick Snelgrove, expressed outrage and said his daughter did nothing wrong. Standing outside the family home in Bridgewater, he held up a photograph of his smiling daughter.

"What happened to her should not happen to any American citizen going to any type of game, no matter what," he said. "She loved the Red Sox. She went in to celebrate with friends. She was a bystander. She was out of the way, but she still got shot. Awful things happen to good people. My daughter was an exceptional person."

A police officer was among the others injured in the melee, but none of the other injuries were severe.

City officials announced there would be a heavy police presence in Kenmore Square after they were caught understaffed when riots broke out when the New England Patriots won the Super Bowl on Feb. 1.

In the Super Bowl aftermath, a 21-year-old man visiting his brother at Northeastern University was killed and a Northeastern student was critically injured when a vehicle plowed into a crowd of revelers.

The new Boston Police Command Center has been in use as the Red Sox advanced through the playoffs. Inside, police watch views from 50 cameras around the city as they coordinate with several agencies, including State Police, the Boston Fire Department and even some college police forces. It was first used during the Democratic National Convention in July. The cameras were installed on top of the ballpark and other locations.

Early Thursday morning, several small fires were set, fireworks shot into the sky, a trash can was thrown at a fast-food restaurant sign and numerous fights broke out. Boston police reported eight arrests, mostly for disorderly conduct, though one arrest was for assault and battery on a police officer.

Elsewhere, 29 people were arrested at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst after revelers threw beer cans and flaming toilet paper at police. And at the university's Dartmouth campus, about 2,000 people had to be dispersed by police using stun grenades.

In New Hampshire, police made about 15 disorderly conduct arrests as crowds swarmed the campus of Plymouth State University and surrounding neighborhoods.

Snelgrove transferred to Emerson from Fitchburg State College a year ago and was a junior majoring in broadcast journalism, said her academic adviser, Janet Kolodzy.

A memorial service was being planned and grief counselors would be on hand to help students deal with Snelgrove's death, Rosen said.
AP NEWS
The Associated Press News Service

Copyright 2004, The Associated Press, All Rights Reserved

JXC · #2 (**permalink**) 10-22-2004, 02:02 AM

Scary...it could have happened to anyone. They should have been more prepared for the mobs...this could all happen again in a week if the Sox win a world series...except this time it will probably be 10 fold. I hope nobody dies...but with the way these things goes, it wouldn't suprise me if somebody did agian.

JCOSU86 · #3 (**permalink**) 10-22-2004, 09:13 AM

Waiting for Sushi to post....

OSUsushichic · #4 (**permalink**) 10-22-2004, 09:56 AM

Everyone here is so disgusted about this. On the front cover of today's Boston Herald is a picture of that girl lying bloodied in the street, and then another, more gruesome picture is displayed on the inside of the paper. I hate that paper anyway (endorsed Bush/tabloid content), but it was in poor taste, and it brought me to tears. The students need to take responsibility for their own actions and act like mature adults, but from the witness accounts it sounds like the police force's actions incited an unnecessary riot scene. No one should be getting shot in the face, but I want to reserve complete judgment until more facts are brought out. (I wasn't near Fenway that night.) This is a city of over 200,000 college students, so of course if you mix that with alcohol things have a chance of getting ugly. The whole situation is just sad. This is supposed to be a time to celebrate here, and instead we have to look at a dead college girl on the front cover of our newspaper.

BuckeyeNation27 · #5 (**permalink**) 10-22-2004, 10:02 AM

sushi, what do you think of the plan to ban alcohol sales during games in the city? I can't really believe that a lack of alcohol after the yankme series wouldve produced anything different.

OSUsushichic · #6 (**permalink**) 10-22-2004, 11:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BuckeyeNation27

sushi, what do you think of the plan to ban alcohol sales during games in the city? I can't really believe that a lack of alcohol after the yankme series wouldve produced anything different.

Thanks for mentioning that -- I meant to post it and then forgot. I think they shouldn't ban alcohol sales altogether, but many stop selling after the 6th or 7th inning. Overall, however, I think this next series of games is going to be more subdued. We already feel like we've won the World Series just from beating the Yankees (not that they're just blowing off St. Louis or anything, but there's no better feeling than seeing Jeter cry like a baby.)