No one charged in last month's Ivy Club painting incident

No one has been charged in connection with an incident involving a smashed painting at the Ivy Club last month, according to police records obtained by The Daily Princetonian.

A male student allegedly punched a museum-framed painting in Ivy Club on Feb. 14, although no charges were filed.

The glass inside the frame was reportedly broken, and several fresh creases were observed on the painting in addition to several spots of blood, according to the police report filed after the incident and obtained through the Open Public Records Act. The student then ran downstairs and out of the club, bleeding heavily from his right wrist, according to the report.

The student said the incident was one huge misunderstanding and that the notion of his having punched the painting misrepresented the situation.Although his name is still in the public record, the student was granted anonymity because no charges were filed.

“It was just an incident that was an accident. It has been dealt with privately with the club,” the student said.

The student also noted that the incident had been resolved both with the police and with the club.

“The police report was false in saying that [it was purposeful],” he said. “I don’t know how it got blown out of proportion … It’s been resolved; there’s nothing coming out of there.”

According to the report, blood was observed on the painting and in several areas on the wall leading out the front door. The student also apparently iced his wrist in the snow for several minutes, tainting the ice with blood.

The police reports also said a Department of Public Safety officer was dispatched to the student’s room later that night, at the request of the Princeton Police Department. The Public Safety officer allegedly found the student unconscious and bleeding heavily from his right wrist. The student was then transported to the University Medical Center of Princeton at Plainsboro. According to the narrative of the incident, the student later regained consciousness, although he was heavily intoxicated.

Ivy president Thatcher Foster ’14 told the police that evening he was unsure if the club would criminally pursue the incident, explaining that the club’s decision depended on the cost of the painting and frame. Foster told the police two days later that the club would handle the incident in-house rather than press formal charges against the student. He valued the painting at between $300 and $400.

The painting was an 1895 “Rugby Match” by WB Mallon, held in an approximately 3 x 2 “museum style” frame. No further police action was taken.

Foster did not respond to multiple requests for comment.