Rockers Madina Lake have been left "utterly baffled and shocked" after a man who allegedly attacked bassist Matthew Leone as he tried to break up a violent dispute between the suspect and his wife was found not guilty of attempting to kill his spouse.
Leone jumped into action in June, 2010 when Justin Pivec's wife called out to him for help during a violent physical altercation with her husband on the streets of Chicago, Illinois.
The rocker, 30, was beaten unconscious and left with a fractured skull and a brain haemorrhage from the incident, and surgeons subsequently had to remove part of his skull to save his life.
Justin Pivec was charged with attempted murder following the fight with his partner, but last week (ends06May12), Cook County Judge Vincent Gaughan cleared him of the crime - and the verdict has shocked the Madina Lake stars.
In a statement posted on the band's Facebook.com blog on Friday (04May12), Leone's bandmate and twin brother Nathan writes: "We're utterly baffled and shocked to get a Not-Guilty verdict in the Justin Pivec attempted murder case.
"Admittedly we're not well versed in the justice system but today a vicious coward was given a free pass for beating his wife and almost killing my brother. This has taken a tremendous toll on all of us for 2 years and though we're devastated... We will continue to focus on the positive, which is that Matthew is still with us and hopefully this has spread awareness for victims of domestic violence. More later as we attempt to comprehend this."
An additional charge of aggravated battery causing serious bodily harm against Pivec is still pending.