Apology Demanded Over Comments on Fatal Fight

Fullerton Mayor Richard C. Ackerman on Monday demanded an apology from a New York congressman who suggested that the city’s police and the Orange County district attorney’s office were not aggressively pursuing an investigation into the death of a 30-year-old Marine in a fight involving two Cal State Fullerton football players.

In a letter to Rep. George Hochbrueckner (D-N.Y.), Ackerman called the congressman’s comments on the case “misleading and inflammatory” and suggested they were motivated by political considerations.

“I am hereby demanding an apology from your office to both the Orange County district attorney’s office and the Fullerton Police Department,” the letter said. It went on to say that, as Hochbrueckner is “well aware, being a member of the House Armed Services Committee,” an incident so potentially sensitive in nature “deserves, and here in Fullerton and in Orange County receives, a thorough examination and investigation before any final conclusions are drawn.”

Hochbrueckner entered the controversy over the April 7 death of Staff Sgt. Richard W. Bottjer by charging last week that local authorities may be mishandling the case. Andy Kennedy, the Long Island Democrat’s chief of staff, said the congressman was drawn into the case because Bottjer’s parents live in his district and are upset that those they consider responsible for their son’s death may never be brought to trial.

Ralph Bottjer, the Marine’s father, said Monday that he has contacted the California attorney general’s office to ask for an inquiry into the way the investigation into his son’s death has been handled.

Ralph Bottjer, who has been staying in Southern California during the past week, said he had spoken with Hochbrueckner’s office and was pleased that the congressman was “interested in seeing justice done down here.”

Kennedy, contacted in New York late Monday, said Hochbrueckner is curious as to why no one has been charged more than a week after Bottjer’s death in the brawl outside a Fullerton nightclub. Two Cal State Fullerton football players have been questioned in the case but not charged.

The district attorney’s office is expected to announce as early as today whether charges will be filed against the Cal State players, identified as quarterback Carlos Siragusa, 21, and wide receiver John Gibbs, 22.