Hopkinton resident Steven Dana (in handcuffs) appears in court for a detention hearing related to attempted murder charges on June 5. PHOTO/NICK SCHOFIELD

Hopkinton resident Steven Dana was released on bail Friday afternoon after a Framingham District Court judge deemed the commonwealth had not met its burden of proving the defendant was a danger to the community.

Friday’s detention hearing was intended to determine whether the 70-year-old posed a risk to other parties in his case and the community at large. Dana was arrested Wednesday and charged with attempted murder after allegedly assaulting and strangling 21-year-old Milford resident Matthew Duffy at Sandy Beach.

Dana pleaded not guilty in court yesterday and was held for Friday’s detention hearing.

“There were many factors that should have disincentivized the violence the defendant chose,” said Middlesex County assistant district attorney Elyse Wyatt. “He was not deterred.”

Wyatt submitted several pieces of evidence to judge Michael J. Callahan during the hearing that, she argued, supported the commonwealth’s request to hold Dana without bail. These included witness statements, photo packets of injuries Duffy received during his altercation with Dana and a strangulation assessment.

Wyatt also screened two video clips for Callahan with footage of the incident. The first, a five-minute long GoPro video taken by witness Benjamin Osmanovic, showed the moments leading up to the fight between both men and their subsequent struggle in the water. 

Dana can be heard on the video telling the group of young men at Sandy Beach to leave the area. Duffy and Dana exchange words before Dana is seen slapping the 21-year-old and landing on top of him in the water. Duffy’s friends pull Dana off him moments later.

The other clip — taken from a CBS News report — showed another angle of the altercation.

In her argument, Wyatt claimed that Dana sought out confrontation with the men and chose to escalate the conflict. She said that despite the fact the individuals were not known to each other, the defendant “still felt it necessary” to seek out a fight.

“His behavior was disproportionate to the argument that was happening,” she concluded.

‘Series of provocations’ instigated conflict

In his remarks to the court, defense attorney David Grimaldi did not dispute the events on the GoPro video, but attempted to characterize the footage differently. He entered evidence from Facebook into the record that spoke to longstanding disputes over jet skis at Lake Maspenock. He pointed to a line heard on the video from one of Duffy’s associates that suggested the men knew they might not be welcomed at Sandy Beach.

Grimaldi also said there were a “series of provocations” that started with the jet skiers that led to the situation escalating.

“ ‘You’re not going to do [expletive]’ is a provocation,” said Grimaldi, referencing something Duffy said on the video. He also called out the moment just before Dana slapped Duffy, where the 21-year-old made a profane insult targeted at the older man.

Another point Grimaldi took to task was the commonwealth’s claim Dana had lied to police in his statement. He said his client willingly spoke to Hopkinton Police and spoke to officers truthfully. He contrasted this with testimony from the witnesses and Duffy, stating that the second video clip Wyatt showed was only given to the media and not handed over to the commonwealth as evidence. Grimaldi inferred the reason for this was because it showed things less favorable to the witnesses’ side of the story.

Grimaldi questioned the drowning accusation, claiming the shallow area Dana and Duffy fought in was only ankle deep. “What Matthew Duffy doesn’t say is ‘You tried to drown me,’ ” Grimaldi said. 

He then reviewed Dana’s history, describing his lack of criminality and life as a husband and father, along with a long work history in sales before retirement. He noted that the commonwealth had asserted a criminal history and aliases attached to the defendant the day before that were not accurate.

Callahan confirmed Dana had no previous criminal history or aliases, as had been reported previously. 

The defense attorney submitted into evidence 14 letters of support from his client’s family and friends, many of whom were in the courtroom.

Added Grimaldi: “I am very doubtful this [case] will be presented to a grand jury and be indicted.”

Judge sets bail, conditions

After a brief recess, Callahan reviewed the facts as they had been presented. “The legal standard is whether this 70-year-old man is a danger to the community and/or individuals,” he explained.

While Callahan acknowledged the video of the altercation was “concerning,” he said he needed to balance that with Dana’s lack of criminal history, support from his character witnesses and “being an upstanding member of the community” for 70 years.

“You get credit for that,” the judge said.

Prior to Callahan’s decision, Wyatt had requested that if the court were to grant bail that it do so under strict conditions. She asked that Dana’s bail be set at $50,000, he have no contact with Duffy and be required to wear a GPS tracker. “The commonwealth has very serious safety concerns for the witnesses,” she explained.

Callahan ruled the commonwealth had not met its burden for proving dangerousness. He set bail at $7,500 and ordered Dana to have no contact with Duffy or the other witnesses. The judge also required the defendant to stay away from Sandy Beach and be banned from possessing firearms.

A probable cause hearing was set for July 13.