Trial Ordered for Ex-Westlake High Student

A former Westlake High School football player was ordered Monday to stand trial on two felony assault charges for his role in a brawl outside a Thousand Oaks house party earlier this year.

Chris Catalano, an 18-year-old University of Wisconsin student, is accused of kicking and punching two teens during the fight.

At Monday’s preliminary hearing, Deputy Dist. Atty Douglas Ridley portrayed Catalano as the leader of an aggressive mob that chased the 19-year-old victims outside an upscale house on Calle de Oro and beat them in the street.

But Catalano’s lawyer, who tried to have the two felony counts dismissed, argued that his client was involved in a one-on-one fistfight that, at best, rises to misdemeanor conduct.

“There is absolutely no evidence anybody acted in concert with anybody else in this free-for-all,” said attorney Jay Johnson, who argued that if there were blows they weren’t severe enough to have resulted in serious injury.

Kelly O’Brien of Thousand Oaks, one of the victims, declined treatment at a local hospital after the incident, and his friend, Kevin Majorino of Camarillo, was treated for scrapes and bruises to his face and released, according to court testimony. Dr. Sheldon Jordan, who was not a treating physician but was called as a defense expert witness, testified that it was impossible for the men to have sustained serious brain injuries because they never reported a loss of consciousness.

Nevertheless, Ventura County Superior Court Judge Donald Coleman held Catalano to answer the two felony charges at trial.

Coleman said there was sufficient evidence to show Catalano beat the victims in a way that could have resulted in bodily injury--the legal standard separating felony and misdemeanor conduct.

However, Coleman noted that the case was borderline and told Johnson he was “close” to granting a defense motion to hold Catalano on lesser battery charges. He said the injuries the men received were not serious, but the actions of the defendant were.

During the daylong hearing, Catalano’s former football teammates testified that they saw a scuffle break out between Catalano and O’Brien after he and Majorino showed up at the party with a group of friends.

The pair were forced outside within minutes, and witnesses testified that they then saw Catalano punch Majorino and later kick O’Brien as a group of teens forced O’Brien to the ground and began beating him.

O’Brien testified that he felt “out of it” after being assaulted, but declined immediate medical attention. He said he saw a chiropractor days later for a sore neck.

B.J. Bush, a former Westlake High football player, reluctantly recalled the scuffle from the witness stand. Lowering his eyes during his testimony, Bush said he saw the defendant hit O’Brien “a couple of times” during the fracas.

He said he also saw Catalano hit Majorino in the face and recalled hearing someone, possibly Catalano, yell out: “Remember my name!”

During his testimony, Bush rarely looked at Catalano, who was seated at the defense table in a dark suit. Catalano, who returned to California for the hearing, remains free in lieu of $20,000 bail, and an arraignment is set for Oct. 16.

If convicted, Catalano’s could face a maximum four-year prison sentence. A standout high school wide receiver and defensive back, he is a redshirt freshman for the Wisconsin Badgers football team.