Official says man used guitar to attack his father

MANCHESTER, N.H. -- The son of a New Hampshire Supreme Court justice was accused Monday of pounding his father in the face with a guitar after hours of drinking.

John Christian Broderick, 30, was arraigned on a charge of assault and ordered held on $100,000 bail.

Justice John Broderick, 54, was attacked in his sleep early Saturday and beaten so severely that a top state official could not recognize him.

He was in serious condition with broken facial bones Monday after six hours of surgery the day before.

Police said the son had blood on his clothes and was so intoxicated they took him to a hospital for observation.

"It was one of the most severe attacks our office has seen," Assistant Attorney General William Delker said.

Delker said the son left the condominium and threw the guitar away after the attack; he would not say whether police had found it. Delker would not say if the guitar was a hollow acoustic instrument or a heavier electric guitar.

The assault followed a daylong argument between father and son, according to court papers.

The elder Broderick went to bed after his son apologized to him, but the younger man began drinking whiskey.

"The more he drank, the more he stewed about the fight," Delker said. "He eventually decided to attack his father while he slept."

Prosecutors said the younger man returned to the house after the beating and asked police officers if his father was OK.

Delker said the younger Broderick was on probation for a robbery in Massachusetts. He pleaded guilty Feb. 26.

Broderick also pleaded guilty recently to disorderly conduct and resisting arrest in New Hampshire. That incident also involved alcohol, Delker said.

Two years ago, the elder Broderick was charged with slapping his son, according to court records.

The charge was later dropped. At the time, Broderick blamed the altercation on his son's drinking problem.