READING, Mass. - Two fathers came to blows over rough play during their sons' youth hockey game, and one of the men died of his injuries.
Michael Costin, a 40-year-old single father of four, was beaten into a coma Wednesday in front of some children at a rink. He was declared brain dead on Thursday and taken off a ventilator Friday, a prosecutor said.
Thomas Junta, 42, was charged with assault and battery before Costin's death. He could now face more serious charges.
''We are now treating this death as a possible homicide,'' Middlesex District Attorney Martha Coakley said at an afternoon news conference.
Because the current charge is a misdemeanor and police did not witness the attack, authorities were not able to hold Junta, Coakley said.
Costin had been out on the ice with a group of youngsters, all about 10 years old, including his three sons and Junta's son. The hockey game was supposed to be non-contact, but police say Junta got agitated when things got rough and some of the players engaged in checking.
Junta and Costin began arguing with each other, and a rink manager threw Junta out, but Junta returned, police said.
Junta, who police say is 6-foot-1 and weighs 275-pounds, knocked the 6-foot, 150-pound Costin to the floor and punched him in the head, police said. Another adult broke up the fight, but Costin was unconscious.
A woman who answered the phone at the Junta home in Reading on Friday refused to comment.
Friends said Costin was an apartment building manager who devoted his spare time to his children, their friends and their sporting events. Going to the rink in Reading, a town of about 23,000 located 15 miles north of Boston, was a regular Wednesday night activity.
Costin had separated from his wife about a year ago and had full custody of their three sons and daughter, 8 to 12 years old. They all lived with Costin's mother.
Nancy Fredrick said she used to stand next to Costin at games when her 10-year-old twins played alongside the Costin boys.
''He just looked like somebody trying hard to make sure his kids did well,'' she said. ''Some hockey fans are loud and noisy. He never made any comments, never shouted during the game.''
A half-dozen hockey sticks were on the front porch of the Costin home Friday, and a red hockey net in the back yard was tattered from use. Costin used to play goalie for children's street hockey games, said 11-year-old Bobby Viera, who stopped by the house on his scooter.
Richard Lapchick, director of the Center for the Study of Sports and Society at Northeastern University, said he hears at least once a month about parents picking fights at their children's games, either with referees, coaches or other parents.
He said fighting has become more common in recent years as parents put increasing pressure on their children to succeed at sports, particularly as a way of getting into college.
''It sadly does not come as a surprise that something like this would happen,'' Lapchick said.