Dressage trainer Michael Barisone, charged in the shooting of a former student, will remain in custody after a Superior Court judge expressed concern during a pretrial detention hearing today about what might happen if he were allowed to go free pending resolution of his attempted murder case.
Lauren Kanarek is still in the hospital after authorities say Barisone shot her twice in the chest Aug. 7 during the culmination of an ongoing dispute that had resulted in police being called to his Long Valley farm several times in the preceding week.
Kanarek and her fiancée, Rob Goodwin, who was injured when he wrested the gun from Barisone, were at odds with the trainer, who was trying to evict them from his home on the farm.
Wearing a yellow prison jumpsuit for his hearing in Morristown, with his left arm in a sling, Barisone heard Judge Stephen Taylor say, “There are procedures in place by civil society in resolving those disputes and if Mr. Barisone had followed those procedures, we wouldn’t be here today.”
Citing a police report that stated Barisone said after his arrest, “I had a good life,” the judge commented that he thought Barisone did pose a danger and “perhaps to himself as well.”
Kanarek’s attorney, Edward David, noted in a press release, “While there may have been a civil disagreement between Lauren and Mr. Barisone, such things never justify the use of a gun.” He noted that her family “expects that he (Barisone) remain in custody pending his trial.”
Barisone’s lawyer, Jeffrey Simms, said that prior to the incident, his client had contacted another attorney about starting civil proceedings against Kanarek and Goodwin in order to evict the couple. Simms said Kanarek and Goodwin refused to obey fire marshals who came to the house and told them to leave. Calling Kanarek a “grifter,” Simms contended she is “more of a villain than a victim,” and asserted the couple was harassing his client.
He noted the altercation took place after an investigator from the state Division of Child Protection and Permanency came to investigate a call about possible abuse involving two youngsters, the children of Barisone’s girlfriend, after the agency was contacted. Simms believes that call was made by Kanarek.
As for the abuse charges, Barisone’s attorney said “there is no substantiation whatsoever to that.”
Simms said Barisone, his girlfriend, who is also a trainer, and her children were living in the house with Kanarek and Goodwin at one point. But noting Barisone felt “extraordinarily threatened” by Kanarek and Goodwin, Simms said his client moved with his girlfriend and her children into a barn office/apartment away from the house.
While investigation into the case is continuing, the next step involves referring the matter to a grand jury. Simms is planning to ask that the detention hearing be reopened within the next few weeks in an effort to get Barisone out of jail.
Kanarek is still hospitalized in serious condition recovering from her wounds. Doctors have performed several procedures to enable her to breathe, since her lungs were damaged in the assault. Her fiancé underwent surgery to repair the hand that was broken when he disarmed Barisone, who was also injured in the incident.
Barisone, who faces two counts of attempted murder and weapons offenses, was an alternate for the 2008 Olympic dressage team. He also trained Allison Brock, who was a team bronze medalist at the 2016 Olympic Games on Rosevelt.