2 U-M students accused of making Molotov cocktails after NCAA championship loss
Ann Arbor firefighters extinguish the mattress fire on White Street where police found up to four Molotov cocktails in the early morning hours of April 9.
Daniel Brenner | AnnArbor.com
Rosario Bruno
Courtesy of the Washtenaw County Jail
Justin Dozier
Courtesy of Washtenaw County Jail
This story has been updated to reflect that both men are members of the U-M wrestling team.
Two Ann Arbor men were arraigned Wednesday on explosives charges for possessing Molotov cocktails the night of the University of Michigan basketball team's national championship loss to Louisville.
Justin Dozier and Rosario Robert Bruno, both 20, were charged in the 15th District Court with two counts each of possessing/manufacturing explosives, a four-year felony.
Ann Arbor police linked the two men to up to four Molotov cocktails in the 1100 block of White Street, where officers were called in the early morning hours of April 9 for a mattress fire, said Lt. Robert Pfannes.
Dozier's warrant indicates he resides in that same block. Bruno's warrant lists another Ann Arbor address.
Pfannes said the mattress fire was extinguished when police arrived, but officers who arrived on the scene that morning located a bottle with some sort of flammable liquid in it, popularly known as a Molotov cocktail. The subsequent investigation linked the two men to "up to four" of them, Pfannes said.
They are both U-M students, according to a university website. Dozier and Bruno are also both on the wrestling team with bios on mgoblue.com.
The two men were freed on personal recognizance bonds and will appear in district court for a preliminary hearing on May 30.
The White Street mattress fire was just one of several that authorities responded to that night.
John Counts covers cops and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at johncounts@annarbor.com or you can follow him on Twitter.
Comments
Laurie Barrett
Sat, May 25, 2013 : 8:46 p.m.
Wanton violence has become a cultural norm in America. College students used to swallow goldfish.
julieswhimsies
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 11 p.m.
Wow. Their Moms will be so proud. *sarcasm font*
a2citizen
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 8:01 p.m.
Now that they have been shown to be athletes maybe you can un-delete the sixth comment, the one calling for suspension.
aduggs
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 6:12 p.m.
Police love picking on UM students. Are you telling me that if I pour gas into a bottle, I can go to jail for 4 years! We must live in a police state then.
julieswhimsies
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 11:01 p.m.
Yep. The Ann Arbor Police just love picking on UM students who break the law.
fjord
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 6:46 p.m.
The "logic" displayed in the above post is breathtaking. Yup, you're right, it's totally a police state. At least in the sense that this is a state, and there are police in it.
Westfringe
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 4:44 p.m.
They should be kicked out of the U. There are plenty of law abiding people who would love to go to the school.
Doug
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 3:38 p.m.
Most, but not all, U of M students are fine upstanding young men and women.
fjord
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 3:55 p.m.
And as much as I hate to admit it, the same applies to MSU and OSU students.
a2cents
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 2:32 p.m.
I know: Let's arm students !! Then...
David
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 2:21 p.m.
FIRST-WORLD PROBLEMS: I hate the fact that Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Molotov's name lives on in such a bravadoes fashion.
Tru2Blu76
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 2:20 p.m.
Whoever manufactures and stores incendiary devices in this country, in these times, has some explaining to do.
Milton Shift
Sat, May 25, 2013 : 6:16 p.m.
Yes - why store it? (Kidding...)
John Counts
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 2 p.m.
The state of Michigan law goes in depth with definitions of explosives and Molotov cocktails here: http://www.legislature.mi.gov/(S(z5lyzrn2qckn14qfeutku3un))/mileg.aspx?page=GetObject&objectname=mcl-750-211a
trespass
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 5:10 p.m.
The definition includes a wick or fuse. You did not describe that in your article. Do you know if the bottle had a wick or fuse?
nvragain
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 1:28 p.m.
Both are varsity wrestlers http://www.mgoblue.com/sports/m-wrestl/mtt/mich-m-wrestl-mtt.html
Milton Shift
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 1:23 p.m.
Explosives explode. Molotovs burn. Molotovs are not explosives.
Milton Shift
Sat, May 25, 2013 : 6:15 p.m.
If Molotovs are explosive devices, then water balloons are hand grenades, and inner tubes are land mines.
Ricebrnr
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 4:55 p.m.
the combustion in a Molotov does not lead to the bursting. It's an open container so there is no pressure build up. The bursting by throwing against a hard object leads to the rapid combustion. Big difference.
Doug
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 3:41 p.m.
"to burst or shatter violently and noisily as a result of rapid combustion...."
ChrisW
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 1:21 p.m.
Good thing they weren't Chemistry majors.
E Claire
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 7:01 p.m.
Tru, I think he's referring to the FL honor student who was expelled from school and had terrorism charges brought against her for an experiment gone wrong. In any event, you all should look that up. Not the norm, I don't think we're in a police state, but disturbing none the less.
Tru2Blu76
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 2:51 p.m.
I get the humor. But in my own experience with chemists - I'm thinking maybe they ARE. ;-)
nickcarraweigh
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 1:21 p.m.
Thank goodness so few young people today know how to make a proper Molotov cocktail
JRW
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 1:19 p.m.
Not to worry. Slap on the wrist justice in Wash Cty is alive and well. Hey, they're UM students! All the more reason to let them go. I bet their criminal records will be scrubbed....after all, they'll get the best lawyer mommy and daddy can buy. They should be expelled from UM immediately, and this crime needs to become part of their criminal records. Without consequences, perps just keep on committing crimes.
trespass
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 6:49 p.m.
@tdw- the student disciplinary process is supposed to proceed regardless of any criminal charges. They can be found responsible under a standard of evidence of "more likely than not" guilty in the student disciplinary process even if the criminal process requires "beyond a reasonable doubt".
tdw
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 6:21 p.m.
I don't think they can be expelled until they are found guilty ( although I'm really not sure how that works )
Dave66
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 1:18 p.m.
Please keep reminding me that this sort of thing never happens at Michigan, only at Michigan State. Because I keep forgetting.
Greg
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 1:10 p.m.
Stupidity and being dangerous should hurt.
Ricebrnr
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 4:53 p.m.
add procreation and you just explained evolution.
A A Resident
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 1:07 p.m.
Explosives charges? A Molotov cocktail is more of an incendiary device than an explosive. We used to play with them when we were kids. I guess the prosecutors don't have the experience to know what they actually do. Kids today!
trespass
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 5:03 p.m.
@fjord- it may make a difference in the length of jail time associated with the crime.
fjord
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 3:40 p.m.
Explosive, incendiary device... Does it matter? It's illegal and dangerously stupid either way. Just because you used to "play" with them, that doesn't make them any less illegal, dangerous, or stupid.
David Briegel
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 1:01 p.m.
Are they part of the "craft cocktail" movement?
G. Orwell
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 3:36 p.m.
Shouldn't "craft" be spelled with a capital "C?"
Usual Suspect
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 12:46 p.m.
The leaders and best.
mady
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 1:43 p.m.
NOT.
DJBudSonic
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 12:05 p.m.
Maybe It was bottles of vodka, and they lost their caps, so they stuffed strips from their t shirts in the tops to keep it from spilling?
Brad
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 4:16 p.m.
I'm thinking they were just undocumented Tiki Torches.
tdw
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 11:42 a.m.
I'm gonna guess they'll just get probation.I'm sure their lawyers will whip out mens rea and other fancy legal stuff
EyeHeartA2
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 11:34 a.m.
Kids do stupid stuff with unintended long term consequences. I'm sure they didn't mean to hurt anyone, but they sure could have, and it sure was a stupid thing to do. Allegedly, of course.
EyeHeartA2
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 3:58 p.m.
Thrown in the vicinity of? Depends on the situation. Incoming or outgoing? I wasn't there, so I can't say how outraged I would or wouldn't be. The other point to consider is that they didn't seem to be thrown at all. Just made. Stupid for sure. For me, a lot has to do with intent. If somebody walks into a liquor store and holds it up, throw the book at them. Carjacking, home invasion, etc. This one? Clearly stupid and dangerous. I really don't believe any malice was intended. That's just my read on it. I am quite sure others will see it different.
JGA2trueblue
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 1:18 p.m.
I agree. Kids? These "KIDS" are supposedly in the upper end on the smart scale. They know the difference between right and wrong. They are ADULTS. Period. Life is about choices and the consequences go alongside. I'm sick of the victim excuse or they didn't mean to hurt anyone. If this was thrown in the vicinity of EyeHeartA2's children or self - would you be saying - oh it was just a stupid thing to do? Expulsion and time.
a2citizen
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 12:02 p.m.
Kids?
Brad
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 11:33 a.m.
Are we sure that they didn't plan to drink them? Stranger things have transpired on White St.
fjord
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 3:45 p.m.
The ingredients of a true Molotov cocktail aren't something you'd want to drink.
RunsWithScissors
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 11:30 a.m.
If true, what a breathtakingly stupid thing to do.
Jack Gladney
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 10:59 a.m.
Hopefully the feds are looking into the backgrounds of these two college students who appear to enjoy making IEDs. Has Boston taught us anything?
Milton Shift
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 1:26 p.m.
Boston taught us that authoritarian police rule offers us no protection. The Boston bomber was only found after the lockdown was lifted, and he was found by a citizen, not the cops.
ArthGuinness
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 12:40 p.m.
Excellent use of sarcasm, MathGeek.
MathGeek
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 11:08 a.m.
Yes, I'm sure they are 'racicalized terrorists' and not simply drunken bafoons.
Craig Lounsbury
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 10:43 a.m.
"Dozier and Bruno are both U-M students, according to a university website." What website? One available to the public? Since there is no mention of them being athletes on scholarship I assume they had the academic resume to get in to UofM?
Pete Cunningham
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 8:21 p.m.
Both are members of the wrestling team, and Dozier received an academic excellence award last year. More details in this update: http://www.annarbor.com/sports/michigan-students-accused-of-molotov-cocktail-possession-members-of-varsity-wrestling-team/
EyeHeartA2
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 12:58 p.m.
ahhhhh book learnin'
Brad
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 11:46 a.m.
I think he's saying that they are smart enough to know better.
EyeHeartA2
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 11:31 a.m.
https://mcommunity.umich.edu/ Not sure what your point on the scholarship is though
Arieswoman
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 10:25 a.m.
If convicted it is sad that they have messed up their lives this way.
trespass
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 10:18 a.m.
Mattress fires and Molotov Cocktails don't seem to go together to me. You don't use a Molotov Cocktail to set a mattress on fire. Flammable liquid in a bottle sounds more like something you would pour on the mattress and then light on fire. The prosecutors often over charge an offense so that they can have leverage to plea bargain down to the real crime. @John- IMO you should be more skeptical of what you read in the prosecutor's charges. Did you interview the suspects' attorney?
trespass
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 6:45 p.m.
@John- Didn't this happen in March? Why would it take so long to arraign them or to get lawyers?
John Counts
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 5:03 p.m.
They were just arraigned. They might not even have attorneys yet. But we will try to get a comment from them at the appropriate time. Also, I'm not getting this from the charges, it's from what Ann Arbor police told me. They didn't want to release many of the details about what exactly took place that night because it might interfere with the adjudication of the case.
A2comments
Fri, May 24, 2013 : 10:07 a.m.
Throw the book at them.