A Watertown businessman was arraigned on a harassment charge Thursday, accused of punching a process server at his Public Square shop.
Judge James Harberson adjourned the case against Michael Defranco until Monday.
The complaint was filed by 33 year old Matthew Shoen of Lorraine, who said he is a process server working for W. K. George Associates.
In a deposition, Shoen said he went into Defranco's shop, Computer Doctors, to serve him legal papers shortly after noon on March 26th. He asked Defranco if he was Michael Defranco, and Defranco said yes, Shoen said.
"I said 'Sir, I have some legal paperwork for you,'" Shoen wrote. "As I was saying that, I was handing him the legal paperwork. As he reached for the paperwork with his left hand he swung at me with his right fist. I moved backward defensively but Defranco's punch still landed, striking me on the lip."
Shoen said Defranco punched him again in the left cheekbone and tried to corner him before Shoen ducked under his arm and escaped out onto the street.
DeFranco told a different story, saying that when Shoen entered the store and asked him if he was Michael Defranco, Defranco responded, "Are you Jon Sabin?"
Shoen nodded, Defranco claimed and Defranco jumped up out of his chair in Shoen's direction.
Shoen, startled, turned toward the door to exit and hit his lip on the doorway," Defranco claimed.
In his deposition, Shoen said his boss told him to call police.
"As soon as I got outside I called my boss, Billy George and told him what happened," Shoen wrote.
The "legal paperwork" Shoen was delivering was a letter from John Sabin, of South Colton, addressed to Defranco and three other individuals.
Headlined, "CEASE AND DESIST," it went on to say the addressees were commanded to stop any reference to "any individual associated with swartzamishblogspot.com" and to remove any and all subject matter immediately, or relief would be sought in state supreme court.
"The further delay your libelous information remains on the message board and KomputerDoctor.com (sic) the greater the damage award will be in a court of law," the letter went on to say.
It was signed Jon Sabin.
The three individuals other than Defranco targeted with the letter are all believed to be current or past contributors to a local web board.
Defranco maintains his own website, Komputerdoktor.com.
He thanked the Watertown Police Department for the way they handled the case.
"The police went out of their way with professionalism and courtesy," Defranco said.
