Copacabana

Old dogs, old tricks

This is good old country boy ass-kickin'! I love being from Georgia!

(Taken from the Athens Banner-Herald, 3/8/06)
Regent, neighbor brawl over dogs

By Merritt Melancon | juliana.melancon@onlineathens.com | Story updated at 11:20 PM on Tuesday, March 7, 2006

A neighborhood dispute over barking dogs led to a street brawl Saturday between University System of Georgia Board of Regents member Donald Leebern Jr. and Mason Lewis Bentley, the son of former Athens mayor Upshaw Bentley.

Although the fight sent Mason Bentley to St. Mary's Hospital emergency room with a broken nose and a punctured and collapsed lung, no charges have been filed against Leebern or Bentley, said Oconee County Sheriff Scott Berry.

"Since the parties were separated when the deputy arrived at the scene, the deputy did not actually see anyone fighting, and we have two conflicting stories about how the fight took place, so it's up to one of the parties involved to go apply for a warrant in Magistrate Court if they want charges filed," Berry said.

Leebern and Bentley got into a fistfight on the streets of the Crystal Hills subdivision in Oconee County Saturday afternoon after their dogs started barking at each other. Leeburn said Bentley kept attacking him even while he was trying to leave, while Bentley said he only fought because the 68-year-old Leebern had called him out into the street to settle a score.

posted by Lola @ 3:51 PM