Nearly a year after he accused Marathon School assistant principal Eric Mitchell of assaulting him in a Plainville casino, West Bridgewater resident Bryan Gallagher recently told the Hopkinton Independent his side of the story.

Gallagher claimed he was protecting a young man from repeated harassment by Mitchell when Mitchell became enraged. He said Mitchell punched him and repeatedly slammed his head into a slot machine. Casino video footage shared with the Independent confirms Gallagher’s description of the alleged assault.

“I’ve always been one for sticking up for other people,” he said in a phone interview with the Independent.

The 62-year-old disabled veteran said he served for 26 years in the Massachusetts National Guard. He was in the Gulf War in 1991 and served in several tours in Kuwait. He also served in Iraq from 2005-08.

Added Gallagher: “I just kept volunteering.”

Holiday casino trip turns violent

Gallagher recounted that he went to the Plainridge Park Casino in Plainville on Presidents Day in 2024. He said he often enjoyed watching sports on the big-screen television from the horseshoe-shaped bar.

“There was a card in the machine I was going to play on,” he explained. “In casinos, if someone leaves their card behind, you leave it on the stand next to the machine. Then the person can get it back”

After winning a jackpot, Gallagher said he moved to a different slot machine. At that time, Gallagher said Mitchell yelled at a young Latino man and his mother for stealing his “[expletive machine].”

“I was like, ‘Hey buddy, I took the card out,’ ” said Gallagher. ” ‘If you have something to say, go to me.’ ”

Gallagher said he saw Mitchell approach the pair two more times.

“I said, ‘Why don’t you just go talk to the manager?’ the third time,” he said before returning to his machine.

“[Mitchell] knocked my beer off the drink stand when he walked past me,” said Gallagher. “I walked up to him and said, ‘Hey, what are you doing?’”

He added that both of his palms were outstretched.

“Mr. Mitchell sucker-punched me with his left hand,” Gallagher said. “Then he threw my head and shoulder into the slot machine three times.

“The Spanish guy is the one who pinned him to the floor until the police arrived,” he recalled. “He saved me from my head being crushed.”

Bryan Gallagher said Marathon School assistant principal Eric Mitchell attacked him at a casino in 2024.

Surgery stems from casino incident

After both parties were questioned by police, Gallagher was transported to Sturdy Memorial Hospital in Attleboro. Mitchell declined medical treatment at the scene.

“I expected Mr. Mitchell to be arrested,” said Gallagher. “But there was no cuffs, no nothing. Not a [expletive] thing.”

Gallagher said a doctor at Sturdy Memorial told him his skull was “nearly cracked.”

When Gallagher was discharged, he returned to the casino to get his truck and head home. The doctor advised him to seek advanced medical treatment if he started to vomit from a possible concussion.

I couldn’t stop throwing up,” Gallagher said. He went to the VA Medical Center in West Roxbury, where he was “admitted right away.” Gallagher would remain there for 25 days.

“They rebuilt my shoulder,” Gallagher explained. “I also had a broken arm. They were worried because I still had blood contusions on my brain.”

‘I thought I would get to tell my story’

Mitchell was arraigned on June 5, 2024. He pleaded not guilty and was released on personal recognizance, according to court records. Pretrial hearings began last July.

“At the March 12 hearing, Mr. Mitchell and his lawyer talked to the court magistrate,” said Gallagher.

Eric Mitchell has been assistant principal at Marathon School since 2023. PHOTO/HOPKINTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS

The following and final hearing was held on May 12. At that time, the case was continued without a finding. This means that there was enough evidence for a guilty verdict, but the judge offers the defendant probation.

“A few days before the [May 12] hearing, I was contacted by the victim advocate,” said Gallagher. “She said the charge of assault with a deadly weapon — the slot machine — had been dropped. She said there was going to be a plea and that I wouldn’t be testifying.”

Gallagher said that call left him “stunned.”

“I thought I would get to tell my story,” Gallagher continued. “I thought we could show the video of what he did to me. They hadn’t even gotten to the evidence because [Mitchell] basically pleaded guilty.”

Added Gallagher: “It’s wicked fishy, all of it. They brushed it aside, like Mr. Mitchell was an entitled person.”

Gallagher did receive $826.76 in restitution. But he said it basically only covered his ambulance bill.

After his shoulder reconstruction, Gallagher said he had to order takeout meals because he was unable to cook.  He also couldn’t drive.

There were more serious medical consequence to Gallagher’s health, the veteran explained. He had been scheduled for an operation to have his pacemaker replaced shortly after the altercation with Mitchell.

Gallagher had to postpone the surgery because of his hospitalization and recuperation. He recently had quadruple bypass surgery.

‘I thought I was going to die’

This past December, Gallagher started posting on Hopkinton social media pages about Mitchell. Shortly thereafter, he learned that Mitchell was placed on administrative leave.

“I thought I was going to die,” Gallagher said. “I wanted to get my story out about what Mr. Mitchell did to me. I don’t think he should be working around kids.”

Since the assault, Gallagher said he has remained in constant pain. He has gone from 220 pounds at the time of the incident to 154 pounds now.

“Every month, I get a notice from the probation department at Wrentham District Court,” he added. “It says the same thing every time. That [Mitchell] is taking anger management classes and to notify them if he comes near me.”

Frustration has haunted Gallagher throughout the entire process.

“What also gets me mad is that there was a security guard at the casino,” he shared. “He could clearly see what was going on. He was just standing there, watching the whole thing, like he didn’t want to touch it.”

“I never heard from the trooper or the detective,” he added. “I also never got a call from the Hopkinton Public Schools about what happened.”

Said Gallagher: “Somebody’s got to listen.”