Board to consider whether Dorchester American Legion post shares any blame for December attack that left a man in critical condition

Update: Board concluded the attack was unforeseeable and not due to anything the post did or didn't do, so no licensing violation.

The Boston Licensing Board could decide Thursday whether an American Legion post in Dorchester could have prevented a man getting punched and knocked into unconsciousness on Dec. 27, leaving him so close to death police called in the homicide unit just in case.

According to police and the bartender at the American Legion Old Dorchester Post 65 at 500 Gallivan Blvd in Adams Corner, the incident started around closing that night.

At a hearing today, the bartender said she told two men they'd had enough to drink and told them it was time to leave. They agreed to leave, but one asked if he could use the restroom first and she agreed.

On the way there, though, police say, Ryan McEleney-Lynch, 24, of Quincy punched the man hard enough to knock him out. Whether he suffered life-threatening injuries from the punch or from hitting his head on something before he collapsed to the floor, however, was unclear. By the time police arrived, however, he was in bad shape.

The man has, so far, survived, so McEleney-Lynch is still facing charges of aggravated assault and battery.

The bartender said she did not see the attack but said that she heard the commotion and that when she came out from behind the bar to see what was happening, she quickly realized the victim was out and she yelled for somebody to call 911. "It was literally just one punch from what I heard," she said.

She said the victim and his friend had only been in the post for about 30 minutes. In contrast, McEleney-Lynch had been at the post for "a few hours," knocking back beers but causing no problems, she said.

She added she didn't know the victim but recognized McEleney-Lynch because he had been before, even gotten into occasional verbal scuffles, but nothing serious, she said.

If the board does decide the post shares some of the blame for the attack, it could punish it by issuing a warning or suspending its liquor license for a period of time.

Innocent, etc.