Hopkinton, Massachusetts man charged with attempted murder in beach fight video freed on bail

The 70-year-old man accused of trying to drown an injured 21-year-old at a Hopkinton, Massachusetts beach was released on bail Friday.

Steven Dana is charged with attempted murder, strangulation/suffocation and assault and battery on a disabled person. Video shows him slapping the young man on crutches at Sandy Beach Wednesday before a struggle in the water ensues.

Framingham District Court Judge Michael Callahan said the video is "disturbing in many ways" but said he could not grant the prosecution's request to hold Dana without bail because has never been arrested or charged with a crime before. The judge set bail at $7,500 and ordered Dana to stay away from Sandy Beach and the alleged victim.

The 21-year-old is Matt Duffy. He said Dana was annoyed that he and his friends were riding a jet ski in Lake Maspenock. Only Hopkinton residents are supposed to use the boat ramp to the lake, and police say Dana allegedly "accosted" Duffy over the residency issue before "forcefully holding the 21-year-old under the water."

"He tackled me into the water, then we were fighting, and then he shoved my head under and was not letting me breathe until my friend came up and pulled him off of me," Duffy told CBS News Boston. "I just knew I couldn't use either of my arms or my leg as they were both broken and it was just praying that he let go or my friends pull him off of me."  

Duffy said he went to the hospital after to see if the incident has made his injuries even worse. Dana is due back in court on July 13 for a probable cause hearing.