Superior High School homecoming festivities left one teen injured and another facing felony charges.
Stephen J. Cannon, 17, is accused of choking a Superior High School student twice -- once during the Homecoming parade and once as he walked back to school along Catlin Avenue. Cannon faces a substantial battery charge for the incident.
Douglas County Court Commissioner Paul Baxter found probable cause Wednesday to charge Cannon.
According to the criminal complaint:
Cannon came up behind the student as he and some friends were standing in front of Burger King watching the parade. Cannon allegedly put the boy in a head lock and the boy almost passed out. When Cannon released the boy, he didn't say anything to him.
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The second assault occurred as the boy and his friends were walking back to school. Cannon was walking with the group, but not saying anything. He then came up behind the boy and wrapped his arms around his neck in a sleeper-type hold as they were passing by Ostrander Hall on the University of Wisconsin-Superior campus. The others in the group yelled at Cannon to let the boy go and after several seconds, he did. Unconscious, the boy dropped to the sidewalk and hit the back of his head on the concrete.
The victim was brought to St. Luke's hospital in Duluth, where he received two staples in his head.
Cannon, described in the complaint as 6-foot-4, was located by police and transported to the Douglas County Jail.
In his statement to Superior Police Officer Patrick Carey, Cannon said: "I felt like fighting but didn't mean to hurt anybody." He said he chose to choke the boy because he looked weak.
"Everybody around us was trying to get me to stop but I wouldn't," Cannon told Carey. "I let him go and he smacked his head on the concrete and had a seizure. He was unconscious, I think."
Cannon remains free on a $2,000 signature bond with the condition that he have no contact with the student he is accused of choking.
