Former New York Gov. David Paterson and stepson attacked after argument

By Paradise Afshar and Michelle Watson, CNN

(CNN) — Former New York Gov. David Paterson and his stepson were attacked Friday night while walking near their home in New York City, according to a spokesperson for Paterson.

When officers arrived at the scene at about 8:30 p.m. ET on Second Avenue near East 96th Street, they saw a 20-year-old man with injuries to the face and a 70-year-old man with injuries to the head, the New York City Police Department said, without naming the victims.

Authorities did not provide information on how the two were injured or what led up to the incident but said two boys, aged 12 and 13, have been arrested.

Paterson and his stepson were attacked by “some individuals that had a previous interaction with his stepson,” Sean Darcy, a spokesperson for Paterson, told CNN in a statement. “They both suffered some injuries but were able to fight off their attackers.”

Argument leads to physical confrontation

Paterson said his stepson Anthony Sliwa was walking his dog, when Sliwa saw three young people climbing up the side of a building, “which has been a way that people been able to gain access to the building and to either vandalize or rob the building in the past,” Paterson said at a Saturday news conference.

Sliwa had an argument with the people climbing up the building but they eventually came down, according to Paterson.

About 45 minutes later, Sliwa and Paterson were walking down 97th Street when they ran into the same three young people, along with a few others, Paterson said.

“The same three kids are there but now it’s a group” of about nine people, he said.

“We have a big argument about whether or not they should be climbing up the building and whether or not it was our business, at which point a woman who was clearly an adult, at least in her 30s, comes into the situation and confronts my stepson to the point where she’s practically pushing him,” Paterson said.

A fight ensued between Sliwa, who Paterson said is martial arts trained, along with Paterson and the other individuals. Sliwa and Paterson were able to get away and call 911. The two were treated at a hospital and later released, a Saturday update from Darcy said.

The altercation left Sliwa with “five stitches put in his lower lip,” and “a number of bruises,” according to Paterson.

“He was pretty badly injured in the confrontation and he’s walking around and I think, more than anything, he is shell shocked from the fact that the incident happened,” Paterson added.

“We hope that the young people involved learn something from this unfortunate encounter,” Darcy said in a Sunday statement.

“This is New York City. I’ve lived here just about all of my life. I love this city,” Paterson said Saturday. “I’ve lived in all types of neighborhoods in this city, and this, as I saw it was an incident that started between young people who were having a fight and a difference of opinion to an adult involved situation where there was no attempt to steal, no attempt to commit other types of crimes, but it definitely was an attempt to win a fight.”

Paterson was sworn in as governor in March 2008 following Gov. Eliot Spitzer’s resignation and left office in December 2010.

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