FOX 9 and KEYC have obtained a copy of the full surveillance video that shows Isaac Kolstad throwing the first punch in the May 11 fight with former Gophers quarterback Philip Nelson.
Before Monday, only parts of the surveillance video had been made public, KEYC reports.
Nelson, who has been dismissed from the Rutgers football team, is facing felony assault charges in the fight, which left Kolstad with a traumatic brain injury. It’s not likely he’ll make a full recovery.
The surveillance video shows this altercation (note: some of the video may be too violent for some):
The video then shows Trevor Shelley, who was also charged in connection with the fight, delivering “a blow that sends Kolstad sprawling to the pavement,” FOX 9 reports, followed by a kick from Nelson, which prosecutors say led to his traumatic brain injury.
Nelson’s attorney has asked for the felony charges against his client to be thrown out because Kolstad initiated the fight and because he says prosecutors don’t have enough evidence justifying first-degree assault charges because they don’t know if Nelson’s kick caused Kolstad’s injuries, or if it was Shelley’s “vicious” punch, the Mankato Free Press reported.
At a hearing last month, Samuel Thompson, a witness to the fight, testified saying Kolstad threw the first punch, knocking Nelson and Shelley to the ground following an argument the two had outside a bar in downtown Mankato, the newspaper says. The argument was reportedly about Nelson’s girlfriend.
FOX 9 reports that police say Kolstad could have potentially faced misdemeanor charges if he wasn’t so seriously injured in the fight, however Kolstad’s attorney says the surveillance video doesn’t show what led up to the fight and if you piece witness accounts together, the former Minnesota State University football player is still the victim.
