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Civil rights injunction obtained in Provincetown assault case

PROVINCETOWN, Mass. — A Wellfleet man has been ordered to stay away from a 14-year-old boy he's accused of assaulting at a Provincetown park because of his race, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey announced Tuesday.

The teenage boy told police Daniel Tripp walked up to him while he was hanging out with his friends in the park next to Provincetown Town Hall on June 15. He said Tripp yelled a racial slur at him, then grabbed him and lifted him up from where he was sitting.

A Truro woman said she witnessed the assault and tried to intervene, telling Tripp to leave the boy alone. She said Tripp then walked over to her, hit her in the chest and punched her in the face.

Provincetown Police referred the case to the attorney general's office.

Healey's office filed a civil complaint in Barnstable Superior Court on September 25 against Tripp, alleging he violated the state's civil rights law when he assaulted the teen because of his race and attacked the woman who tried to protect the boy.

The judge granted a preliminary injunction against Tripp on Thursday ordering him not to contact the victims, their families or any witness in the case. He's also not allowed to come within 25 yards of the victims or within 50 yards of their homes, workplaces and school.

Tripp is also prohibited from threatening, harassing or intimidating the victims or any person on the basis of race.

The injunction was brought under the Massachusetts Civil Rights Act.

According to the attorney general's office:

"Under the Massachusetts Civil Rights Act, the AG's Office may obtain injunctions against individuals who threaten, intimidate, or coerce victims and interfere or attempt to interfere with their secured rights, such as the right to access public ways or places, the right to associate, or the right to be safe and secure in one's person. The AG's office prioritizes cases involving conduct that is motivated by the offenders' bias against the victim(s) because of their membership in a protected class race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability, for example."

In addition to the preliminary injunction, the attorney general's office is seeking a permanent injunction in accordance with the terms of the preliminary injunction, as well as civil penalties, attorney fees and damages for the violations.