A Nassau jury delivered a split verdict in the high-profile trial of Michael Stallone, a Floral Park father accused of rushing onto a youth league soccer field and striking an 11-year-old girl. The incident, which occurred during a game at the Mitchel Athletic Complex in Garden City on September 28, 2024, stemmed from a collision between the alleged victim and a player from Stallone's daughter’s team. After an hour and a half of deliberation, the jury acquitted Stallone of the top charge of third-degree misdemeanor assault but convicted him of endangering the welfare of a child.

Defense attorney Marc Gann characterized the outcome as the jury "splitting the baby," acknowledging that the endangering welfare charge was "amorphous" and harder to disprove given Stallone's actions. Stallone now faces up to a year in jail for the A-level misdemeanor conviction and is scheduled for sentencing on February 3. The victim’s father reacted with visible anger outside the courtroom, questioning the not-guilty verdict for assault and exclaiming, "What did she do wrong? Tell me? Play the sport she loved?"

The incident unfolded during a U12 girls' soccer match when Stallone's daughter was knocked to the ground in a violent collision with another player. Stallone, a landscaper who was on disability due to a work injury, reportedly witnessed the impact, which his attorney claimed was audible and severe enough to temporarily knock his daughter unconscious. Acting on instinct, Stallone ran onto the field. Prosecutors alleged that an angry Stallone confronted the 11-year-old girl involved in the collision, screaming, "What do you think you are doing?" and striking her with the butt of his palm. The criminal complaint specified that the alleged victim stated Stallone struck her in the face with "an open hand and elbow."

During the weeklong trial, the alleged victim, her coach, and her mother testified, recounting their shock at Stallone's sudden intervention. A crucial piece of evidence was a 7-second video clip of the game, played repeatedly for the jury. The footage, shot from across the field, showed the collision and Stallone's subsequent approach to the victim, where he appeared to shove her. A parent could be heard exclaiming, "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Ref!" While the victim remained on her feet in the clip, she appeared to double over after the exchange with Stallone.

The defense argued that Stallone reacted "instinctively, not intentionally" as a parent seeing a collision. Gann maintained that the referee had lost control of the game, with other players already suffering injuries. He contended that the red welt observed on the young girl’s cheek under her right eye was sustained during the collision between players, not from Stallone. Furthermore, Gann argued that the video undermined the witness testimony, asserting that it was "physically impossible" for Stallone to have struck the girl at the angle and in the manner described by prosecutors, given his approach. He stated that Stallone would have had to come "completely around her" to hit her with the butt of his palm on her right side.

Prosecutors, however, rejected the defense’s narrative. Assistant District Attorney Daniel Golden asserted in his closing arguments that "When Michael Stallone took matters into his own hands, and struck a child with those hands, it was because he was angry with a play on the field," adding, "His intentions were clear; he intended to hurt [the girl]." Stallone’s wife was seen rushing to pull him off the field, which the defense claimed was her protecting her husband, but prosecutors interpreted it as an attempt to restrain him from further actions.

Following the incident, officials and coaches immediately stopped the game, and Nassau County police were called. Stallone was arrested on charges of third-degree assault, endangering the welfare of a minor, and drug possession. A single oxycontin pill was found in an unmarked bottle in his pocket. His attorney stated the pill was prescribed and anticipated the charge would be dropped. Separately, the Long Island Soccer Club conducted an investigation and indefinitely suspended Stallone from all program activities, citing a "zero-tolerance policy" for behaviors that undermine player safety or sportsmanship. Gann called the criminal charges an "overreaction," describing his client as a "mild manner, nice guy" who was merely trying to help and was upset that his conduct was misinterpreted.

The 11-year-old girl's parents reported that she was shaken and scared by the ordeal, initially reluctant to continue playing soccer. However, the defense confirmed that she has since returned to the sport in the year following the incident.