2008 Woodie Awards
Aftermath of brutal attack on UI student
Clara Hogan - The Daily Iowan
Issue date: 5/9/08 Section: Metro
The final blow could have killed him within 30 minutes.
It was a punch that smashed UI student Brian LaGro's skull, flooding blood between his skull and brain tissue and sending his body to the concrete sidewalk.
During the early hours of May 3, the 22-year-old was reportedly beaten by a group of people near the L&M Mighty Shop, 504 E. Burlington St. Although LaGro has been released from the hospital, the investigation is still going on; as of Thursday, police have not yet found any suspects.
The assault
It is fuzzy to police, his family, and LaGro himself what exactly happened around 2:15 a.m. near downtown Iowa City, but there is a generic picture of how the incident played out.
Phillip LaGro, LaGro's father, said his son was out with some of his roommates and friends when he decided to leave one of the downtown bars and walk alone to his home on Johnson Street, only one block away from the site he was attacked.
A group of people was reportedly involved, but there are different reports on the exact number, said Iowa City police Sgt. Troy Kelsay. Some have said it was a couple of males and a female, and others said there were many as five people who fled the area after what Phillip LaGro calls "the final blow," which sent his son to sidewalk, unconscious, nearly hanging into the street.
Hospital workers told him his son was extremely lucky the incident occurred in a busy area, and not in a residential neighborhood in which he might not have been found so quickly. If that had been the case, he most likely wouldn't be alive.
A group of people across the street saw him fall to the ground and immediately called police.
From the moment officers arrived at the scene and saw him lying unconscious, they knew his life was on the line. He was bleeding from his ears and had sustained several brutal blows to his head.
"The officers on the scene were extremely concerned," Kelsay said. "They aren't medical professionals, but they could tell it wasn't just someone with a split lip."
Around two hours after his son was admitted into the hospital, Phillip LaGro received a call from the UIHC. His son had been beaten, and he was going to need brain surgery.
'The closest thing to being dead'
The four-hour drive from Brian LaGro's hometown, the Lake Zurich area of Illinois, was surreal for his father.
"I must of been in some kind of shock, because I was completely focused on getting there. It was like I was above myself looking down on what I was doing," Phillip LaGro told the DI on Thursday. Sitting in a conference room, he recounted the past six days with a sincere and paternal calmness that only occasionally gave way to emotion or anger at his son's attackers.
The drive was spent making phone calls to Brian LaGro's mother and girlfriend, the Iowa City police, and the UIHC. While still in the car, he was notified his son made it out of surgery OK.
It wasn't until around 9 a.m. that Phillip LaGro saw his son.
"To see him like that, like he had been hit by a train, with massive bandages and tubes running down his throat," he said, voice tinged with sadness. "He looked like the closest thing to being dead."
When visiting, his roommates and friends - mainly all "football-player types" - had to leave the room to cry.
Brian LaGro woke up the evening of May 3, nearly 20 hours after he left the bar. The last thing he remembered was walking home on a Friday night. He had no recollection of his injuries or the faces of his assailants.
For the past six days, he has slipped in and out of sedation in agonizing pain. On Thursday, he was released from the hospital and told to do as close to nothing as possible.
From football to international business
Brian LaGro is an athletic man who has spent his life playing sports. His father said he started playing football when he was 8 years old and continued throughout high school.
When he graduated, he went to college at Mount Union College in Ohio for two years to play football. The school is a top Division III school in football.
He decided to come to the UI, where dozens of his friends attend school, to pursue a major in international business.
This week has shown that he is a happy, likable guy, Phillip LaGro said.
"I didn't realize quite the number of people who care about Brian," he said. "The students helping put out the fliers to help find who did this to Brian are probably the nicest and most caring group of young people I've ever met."
Before the attack, Brian LaGro spent his time studying, working at Texas Roadhouse in Coralville, and working out.
Catching the criminals
The Iowa City police has assembled a team of investigators to look into the incident. The security cameras from the L&M Mighty Shop were confiscated. The Iowa City Area CrimeStoppers is offering a reward of up to $1,000 for information leading to an arrest of the suspect(s) - all calls to the line are confidential and anonymity is guaranteed, and callers do not have to reveal their identity to collect a reward.
But Brian LaGro's friends and family wanted to do more. They have saturated Iowa City with fliers stating that they will give up to $10,000 reward to anyone providing information leading to an arrest of the person or people who committed the assault.
"We're all determined to find those involved," Phillip LaGro said, his voice louder, agitated. "There's no way they're getting away with it."
He said they feel a sense of urgency of catching the attackers before the UI ends for the semester - just in case they were students - when everyone scatters after finals.
Brian LaGro's friends have also sent out mass e-mails to sororities and fraternities to get the word out, he said.
Recovery
Brian LaGro is recovering slowly. His friends say he seems normal, although he is affected by the pain medication.
He and his family will go back to his hometown this weekend.
Once his son is better and things settle down, Phillip LaGro plans to come up with a written campaign against "alcohol-infested" campuses across the nation, focusing on the UI. He says that alcohol abuse is a national epidemic that is, in general, ignored.
"People are killed, and beaten, and hurt every day because of alcohol," he said. "We all know it. University leaders know it, police officers know it, and city officials know it. Someone actually has to do something."
Phillip LaGro said that now his son, unfortunately, serves as the poster boy for the connection between alcohol and violence. The seriousness of his story shines a light on an issue that continues to be neglected, he said.
During his time in town, Phillip LaGro said many officials and people he has spoken with have expressed their frustration with the increase in violence in Iowa City.
UI senior Greg Guinter, one of Brian LaGro's roommates, agreed that Iowa City has become more violent.
"It's unbelievable how bad it's gotten since my freshman year in terms of violence and sexual assaults," he said.
The physical and emotional recovery process is only in its beginning stages, said Phillip LaGro, said he would use his son's pain to do good for communities.
"It could have been anyone," he said. "I see hundreds of young guys walking around campus, and I just keep thinking, it was just pure dumb luck it was Brian."
E-mail DI reporter Clara Hogan at:
clara-hogan@uiowa.edu
Contact the Iowa City Area CrimeStoppers
• Call (319) 358-TIPS If you have any information about the assault on Brian LaGro.
• There is a reward of up to $1,000 for information leading to an arrest of any suspect(s).
• All calls are confidential and anonymity is guaranteed, and callers do not have to reveal their identity to collect a reward.
It was a punch that smashed UI student Brian LaGro's skull, flooding blood between his skull and brain tissue and sending his body to the concrete sidewalk.
During the early hours of May 3, the 22-year-old was reportedly beaten by a group of people near the L&M Mighty Shop, 504 E. Burlington St. Although LaGro has been released from the hospital, the investigation is still going on; as of Thursday, police have not yet found any suspects.
The assault
It is fuzzy to police, his family, and LaGro himself what exactly happened around 2:15 a.m. near downtown Iowa City, but there is a generic picture of how the incident played out.
Phillip LaGro, LaGro's father, said his son was out with some of his roommates and friends when he decided to leave one of the downtown bars and walk alone to his home on Johnson Street, only one block away from the site he was attacked.
A group of people was reportedly involved, but there are different reports on the exact number, said Iowa City police Sgt. Troy Kelsay. Some have said it was a couple of males and a female, and others said there were many as five people who fled the area after what Phillip LaGro calls "the final blow," which sent his son to sidewalk, unconscious, nearly hanging into the street.
Hospital workers told him his son was extremely lucky the incident occurred in a busy area, and not in a residential neighborhood in which he might not have been found so quickly. If that had been the case, he most likely wouldn't be alive.
A group of people across the street saw him fall to the ground and immediately called police.
From the moment officers arrived at the scene and saw him lying unconscious, they knew his life was on the line. He was bleeding from his ears and had sustained several brutal blows to his head.
"The officers on the scene were extremely concerned," Kelsay said. "They aren't medical professionals, but they could tell it wasn't just someone with a split lip."
Around two hours after his son was admitted into the hospital, Phillip LaGro received a call from the UIHC. His son had been beaten, and he was going to need brain surgery.
'The closest thing to being dead'
The four-hour drive from Brian LaGro's hometown, the Lake Zurich area of Illinois, was surreal for his father.
"I must of been in some kind of shock, because I was completely focused on getting there. It was like I was above myself looking down on what I was doing," Phillip LaGro told the DI on Thursday. Sitting in a conference room, he recounted the past six days with a sincere and paternal calmness that only occasionally gave way to emotion or anger at his son's attackers.
The drive was spent making phone calls to Brian LaGro's mother and girlfriend, the Iowa City police, and the UIHC. While still in the car, he was notified his son made it out of surgery OK.
It wasn't until around 9 a.m. that Phillip LaGro saw his son.
"To see him like that, like he had been hit by a train, with massive bandages and tubes running down his throat," he said, voice tinged with sadness. "He looked like the closest thing to being dead."
When visiting, his roommates and friends - mainly all "football-player types" - had to leave the room to cry.
Brian LaGro woke up the evening of May 3, nearly 20 hours after he left the bar. The last thing he remembered was walking home on a Friday night. He had no recollection of his injuries or the faces of his assailants.
For the past six days, he has slipped in and out of sedation in agonizing pain. On Thursday, he was released from the hospital and told to do as close to nothing as possible.
From football to international business
Brian LaGro is an athletic man who has spent his life playing sports. His father said he started playing football when he was 8 years old and continued throughout high school.
When he graduated, he went to college at Mount Union College in Ohio for two years to play football. The school is a top Division III school in football.
He decided to come to the UI, where dozens of his friends attend school, to pursue a major in international business.
This week has shown that he is a happy, likable guy, Phillip LaGro said.
"I didn't realize quite the number of people who care about Brian," he said. "The students helping put out the fliers to help find who did this to Brian are probably the nicest and most caring group of young people I've ever met."
Before the attack, Brian LaGro spent his time studying, working at Texas Roadhouse in Coralville, and working out.
Catching the criminals
The Iowa City police has assembled a team of investigators to look into the incident. The security cameras from the L&M Mighty Shop were confiscated. The Iowa City Area CrimeStoppers is offering a reward of up to $1,000 for information leading to an arrest of the suspect(s) - all calls to the line are confidential and anonymity is guaranteed, and callers do not have to reveal their identity to collect a reward.
But Brian LaGro's friends and family wanted to do more. They have saturated Iowa City with fliers stating that they will give up to $10,000 reward to anyone providing information leading to an arrest of the person or people who committed the assault.
"We're all determined to find those involved," Phillip LaGro said, his voice louder, agitated. "There's no way they're getting away with it."
He said they feel a sense of urgency of catching the attackers before the UI ends for the semester - just in case they were students - when everyone scatters after finals.
Brian LaGro's friends have also sent out mass e-mails to sororities and fraternities to get the word out, he said.
Recovery
Brian LaGro is recovering slowly. His friends say he seems normal, although he is affected by the pain medication.
He and his family will go back to his hometown this weekend.
Once his son is better and things settle down, Phillip LaGro plans to come up with a written campaign against "alcohol-infested" campuses across the nation, focusing on the UI. He says that alcohol abuse is a national epidemic that is, in general, ignored.
"People are killed, and beaten, and hurt every day because of alcohol," he said. "We all know it. University leaders know it, police officers know it, and city officials know it. Someone actually has to do something."
Phillip LaGro said that now his son, unfortunately, serves as the poster boy for the connection between alcohol and violence. The seriousness of his story shines a light on an issue that continues to be neglected, he said.
During his time in town, Phillip LaGro said many officials and people he has spoken with have expressed their frustration with the increase in violence in Iowa City.
UI senior Greg Guinter, one of Brian LaGro's roommates, agreed that Iowa City has become more violent.
"It's unbelievable how bad it's gotten since my freshman year in terms of violence and sexual assaults," he said.
The physical and emotional recovery process is only in its beginning stages, said Phillip LaGro, said he would use his son's pain to do good for communities.
"It could have been anyone," he said. "I see hundreds of young guys walking around campus, and I just keep thinking, it was just pure dumb luck it was Brian."
E-mail DI reporter Clara Hogan at:
clara-hogan@uiowa.edu
Contact the Iowa City Area CrimeStoppers
• Call (319) 358-TIPS If you have any information about the assault on Brian LaGro.
• There is a reward of up to $1,000 for information leading to an arrest of any suspect(s).
• All calls are confidential and anonymity is guaranteed, and callers do not have to reveal their identity to collect a reward.
Viewing Comments 1 - 10 of 31
Jessie
posted 5/09/08 @ 9:26 AM CST
That's horrible! Who would do such a thing? I hope the people that did this are caught and sent to jail for the rest of their lives. They should be ashamed of themselves. (Continued…)
Seattle Guy
posted 5/09/08 @ 10:02 AM CST
I went to Iowa from 1980-87. When I arrived on campus, the drinking age was 19, and you could buy beer at the IMU - either in the student bar (the Wheelroom) or the bowling alley (which got absorbed by the bookstore). (Continued…)
ac
posted 5/09/08 @ 10:23 AM CST
Am I missing something, or did it say anywhere in the article that this assault was related to alcohol? The only one that we know was drinking was Brian. (Continued…)
Ann T
posted 5/09/08 @ 11:25 AM CST
Unfortunately, alcohol and violence go hand in hand. I have been hearing for years about the increase in binge drinking on campuses (high school and colleges) across the United States, and the consequences of this problem. (Continued…)
JITA
JITA
posted 5/09/08 @ 11:39 AM CST
Now the students and faculty of UI can honor two people as reasons to stop drinking ... Marc Zider and Brian LaGro.
Students and Faculty should try Concorde purple grape juice; it is ten times better for your blood and doesn't approach the molecular configuration of gasoline. (Continued…)
Bryan
posted 5/09/08 @ 11:43 AM CST
I don't think any of us can really say that there is "more" violence now than before, though it may seem like it. However, I do agree that drinking and violence go hand-in-hand. (Continued…)
Joe
posted 5/09/08 @ 11:46 AM CST
If you saw this I would turn them in for $11,000 in a heartbeat.
Whoever did this, to run like a pussy, is a coward. "oh, i'm man enough to beat somebody but i don't have the balls to face him"
Plus, this bunch of pussies probably ganged up on him. (Continued…)
Terry
posted 5/09/08 @ 12:09 PM CST
Brian's mother is my Cousin and we live in Colorado and have a 24 year old son that finished his college education a few years ago and I agree with Phil on the monster that we have created. (Continued…)
Joe
posted 5/09/08 @ 12:22 PM CST
And you don't think they would obtain alcohol any other way? Get a clue. Let's just change a culture that has endured for how many years on the snap of your fingers? I was drinking far before I ever went to a bar or college, suprise suprise, but so were a lot of other people. (Continued…)
boilerdan
posted 5/09/08 @ 12:49 PM CST
My heart goes out to Brian and his family. As a father of two kids ages 19 and 17, I can only imagine how difficult and gut wrenching this experienece must be for them. (Continued…)
Post a Comment