The Superior Court in Derby, Conn.
Brian A. Pounds / Hearst Connecticut Media file photo
BRIDGEPORT – A local lawyer has been charged with punching another lawyer outside the Derby courthouse on Wednesday.
Robert Serafinowicz, 43, was charged with third-degree assault on an elderly person and breach of peace. He was released on a promise to appear in court pending arraignment on Thursday in the Derby courthouse.
Serafinowicz could not be reached for comment.
According to Derby police and witnesses, Serafinowicz allegedly punched attorney Edward Gavin, of Bridgeport, in the side of the head on the sidewalk outside the courthouse Wednesday morning.
Police confirmed they have secured video of the incident.
Gavin declined comment.
Last February Serafinowicz made national news when he successfully represented former Fairfield dog rescue agency President Heidi Lueders who was found not guilty by a judge of animal cruelty charges in the death of five dogs in her former Fairfield home.
But Serafinowicz also made headlines in 2013 when he was suspended from practicing law for 120 days after stood on the steps of the Derby courthouse and in front of news media made disparaging remarks about a judge, according to court documents.
The suspension was upheld in 2015 by the state Appellate Court.