Fleiss had driven Imbert and two other male College students to the bus stop to pick up friends from Mount Holyoke College. Matt Tierney '04, one of the passengers in the car, noticed two students standing near the bus stop-an Asian male and an Asian female, both of whom he identified as students at the College. The passengers heard a loud noise in the car and realized that one of the students outside had thrown a rock at the vehicle.
Fleiss pulled over immediately to investigate what had happened. "I asked him why he did this," said Fleiss. "As I was asking him, he ... punched me." According to Fleiss and other witnesses, the male who punched Fleiss was not the only offending individual. "When [Fleiss] got out of the car, approximately six Asian men came from behind the bushes. Three of the men punched him," said Tierney.
As Imbert approached the bus stop shortly after Fleiss, three of the other men began to attack him, punching him repeatedly.
Tierney called 911 from his cell phone. The 911 dispatcher told the caller not to pursue the attackers and to talk to the officers in the town police cruiser that had arrived in front of Porter House. According to Chief of Campus Police John Carter, Campus Police was notified of the situation by town police because 911 connects a caller to town police. Campus Police dispatched officers to the scene when they were informed of the incident.
According to Tierney, the assailants had crossed Route 9 and run behind Porter toward the Alumni House. The female who was at the bus stop ran toward the College campus, while the male she was with ran with the others.
Fleiss tried to chase after the individuals, but a town police officer intercepted him. "The cop said, 'Calm down, cowboys,' and Dave [Imbert] and I were covered with blood," said Fleiss.
Fleiss, Tierney and Imbert report that they found the town police unresponsive regarding this incident. "The attackers are 500 feet away from us right now. Why are you letting them get away?" Tierney said he had asked an officer. "The cop was like, 'Do you have a badge? They're running on Amherst campus. It's your police who have to deal with this.'"
Tierney said that the officers laughed at the situation. He asked the officers why they were laughing. "The cops kept laughing," he said. "They got into their cruisers and left. They didn't seem to think it was a big deal."
The town police department refused to comment on the matter.
Fleiss and Imbert went to the emergency room while Tierney went to the town police station shortly after the altercation. At the police station, no report was filed. "[The officer at town police] said since the crime was a past attack there was nothing they could do about it," said Tierney.
The College has been supportive of Fleiss and Imbert. "We've encouraged the students who came forward to press both criminal charges and disciplinary charges [against any College students involved]," said Dean of Students Ben Lieber. "I encouraged the students to write a letter of complaint to the town police. If they were to do that we would be certain to follow up ourselves with the town police to discuss the issue."
Fleiss and Imbert have obtained legal counsel and intend to take action against the town police.
Professor of Political Science Hadley Arkes is assisting the students with the legal action. "The boys just came in to see me, and I think something really has to be done," Arkes said. "The College really has to do some inquiries with the town police."
Campus Police is also involved in the situation. "We are conducting an investigation into the assault," said Carter. "We came to an agreement [with town police] that since the event happened on Amherst College property … we would take the lead in the case. If we need help, town police will help us."
According to Carter, Campus Police investigates most occurrences on campus. Although a portion of this attack took place on town property, "Massachusetts case law and court decisions allow us to stretch our authority onto contiguous ways," Carter explained.
Fleiss and Imbert were both appreciative of the efforts of Campus Police. "The Campus Police were very courteous," said Imbert. "The most upsetting thing is not that we were attacked, but that the people who dealt with us at first were totally non-responsive. You expect criminals to be criminals, but you expect police officers to help."