After long recovery, assault victim is back at work

BLOOMFIELD, NJ — A Bloomfield resident brutally attacked in January by a gang of juveniles on Arlington Avenue began working full-time again last week. His assailants had worn a type of glove used by motorcyclists with hardened, composite material protecting the knuckles.
Adam Young returned to his job as the lead brewer for Brooklyn Brewery following a slow convalescence at home with his fiancee. He began working on a part-time basis in May after a neurologist cleared him to work three hours a day, three days a week. But Young, whose face and head had been beaten, still suffers from physical and emotional injuries.

In an interview last month at his home, he said he had sustained damage to his sinuses; had short-term memory impairment; became easily agitated; now required eyeglasses; had difficulty speaking complete sentences; regularly had headaches; and was seeing a psychologist every week, often accompanied by his fiancee, Diane Biancamano. In an email earlier this week, Biancamano said Young continues to experience the same physical symptoms he described in June.

Young was attacked Friday, Jan. 27, following a train commute home from New York that stopped at the Watsessing train station. While walking on Arlington Avenue, he heard something behind him and saw a group of juveniles. He kept walking. That was the last thing he remembered until Bloomfield EMS found him semi-conscious in the street. He was hospitalized for two days.

Two of his assailants were arrested by the Bloomfield Police Department a short time after the attack. They were carrying the gloves used by motorcyclists. Other arrests followed. Young’s wallet was found on one of the suspects. Only his driver’s license was missing.

His assailants were identified as five East Orange juveniles. A sixth person, the alleged ringleader and a Newark adult, got away. According to Young and Biancamano, Assistant Essex County Prosecutor Romil Amin told them the attack was an initiation for gang membership.

In a June 5 email, Bloomfield Police Director Sam DeMaio said if a county investigation had developed information that the attack was gang-related, then the county has to be the agency to comment on it. The Essex County Prosecutor’s Office would not comment on any juvenile-related case. But Biancamano said all five juveniles were caught.

“The ringleader and three juveniles were involved in the assault,” Biancamano said. “Two other juveniles held back and got the least punishment. A 17-year-old from East Orange got 15 months probation. He was the first to attack and took the wallet. He had a prior arrest but no convictions. They only gave us their initials. We weren’t allowed the names. A 14-year-old, who had received stolen property, he received a nine-month disposition. A 15-year-old with no prior criminal record received a six month deferred disposition. A 17-year-old, he ran away and hung back. He was given a class to attend. A 17-year-old, with a similar robbery before, was given a three-month deferred disposition.” A deferred disposition is a suspended sentence.

Young said he had been contacted several times by the assistant prosecutor who checked on his condition, wanting to know if he had any lifelong disabilities.

“They never told us what was going on,” Young said of the ECPO. “I was left in the dark. I had wanted to give the prosecutor documents of my medical situation. But the deal was already made and it was over. We were told by the prosecutor everyone took a plea deal.”

“We expressed great interest in having them tried as adults,” Biancamano said. “But the Prosecutor’s Office chose not to do that. The frustrating thing is that these kids are out and leading normal lives. And ours is not normal. Juveniles can get away with anything short of murder. The scariest thing is that these gang activities are spilling over into Bloomfield. It wasn’t as if robbery was the motive. It was just to attack someone.”

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