Long Valley Olympian Was Harassed Before Alleged Shooting: Lawyer

LONG VALLEY, NJ — The alleged shooting of a promising dressage rider by her coach came after a “package of attempted threats” against the coach as part of a landlord-tenant dispute, his lawyer said in Morris County court on Wednesday.

Michael Barisone, 54, a former Olympic equestrian and coach, is accused of shooting Lauren Kanarek twice in the chest, and attempting to shoot her fiance, Rob Goowdin. The incident happened the same day Kanarek allegedly called the Division of Child Protection and Permanency (DCP&P) to Barisone’s Long Valley farm in what defense attorney Jeffrey Simms said is just one example of a pattern of harassment levied by Kanarek against Barisone.

Kanarek remains in the intensive care unit at Morristown Medical Center Wednesday morning, “literally fighting for her life,” assistant prosecutor Christopher Schellhorn said.

It was a “package of attempted threats” including Kanarek “standing outside his room at night screaming that ‘we’re going to do everything we can to destroy you, everything we can do to hurt their children,’” Simms said, that eventually “culminated into a situation that was completely out of hand.”

Kanrak’s attorney, however, said that the dispute should not have culminated in violence.

“While there may have been a civil disagreement between Lauren and Mr. Barisone, such things never justify the use of a gun,” Kanarek family lawyer David said in a statement.

Morris County Superior Court Judge Stephen Taylor echoed that sentiment, saying on Wednesday, “Barisone resorted to violence to resolve this dispute. That reliance on the violence is very troubling to the court.”

Barisone will remain in jail while he awaits trial on two counts of attempted murder and two weapons charges, Taylor ruled on Wednesday. Taylor cited an ongoing risk to Kanarek and Goodwin as a need to keep Barisone detained.

The prosecution agreed that the shooting came during an ongoing landlord-tenant conflict, but disputed that Barisone was the victim.

Kanarek and Goodwin were living in the home on Hawthorne Farms, the equestrian facility owned by Barisone, both lawyers said.

Barisone lived in the home alongside Kanarek and Goodwin until about 10 days before the shooting, when the business relationship between the two “soured very quickly,” Schellhorn said. According to Simms, Barisone moved out of the home and into an office at the barn about a half mile away on the property because he lived in “constant fear” of Kanarek.

Barisone and Kanarek both called police a number of times in the week preceding the shooting, and both had retained lawyers in an attempt to resolve the tenancy issues, Schellhorn said.

The morning of the shooting, officers from the Division of Child Protection and Permanency (DCP&P) came to the farm on Aug. 7 on a call that Barisone was abusing his fiance’s two young children, a claim Simms vehemently denied.

Moments after DCP&P left the property, Barisone drove his truck down a dirt road on the farm and went to the home Kanarek and Goodwin were staying in. He is then accused of shooting Kanarek twice in the chest at close range, and attempting to shoot Goodwin.

Kanarek and Goodwin had been living in the home for several months, as part of the “summer season” of dressage, after having previously lived in the home last summer, Simms said.

Simms described Kanarek as a “known grifter” in the equestrian community, saying that she continued to stay in the home even after she stopped training her horses at Barisone Dressage. Barisone asked Kanarek to leave several times, Simms said, describing Kanarek and Goodwin as “squatters.”

There was no written lease agreement and no money ever changed hands, Simms said.

Sueprior Court Judge Stephen Taylor ruled Wednesday morning that Barisone will be held in jail pending a trial on attempted murder and weapons charges.

Barisone poses a significant ongoing threat to Kanarek and Goodwin, and might also pose a threat to himself, Taylor said.

Taylor denied defense attorney Jeffrey Simms’ request to have Barisone released on cash bail, citing the nature of the crimes, his extensive network in the national and international equine communities, and Kanarek and Goodwin’s continued residency on the farm.

Of particular concern to Taylor was a section of the affidavit of probable cause that quoted Barisone as saying “I had a good life” several times while he was being arrested.

“I had a good life,” Taylor read aloud four times. “That is a rather fatalistic statement on his part that is troubling to the court, in regards to what may happen if Mr. Barisone is released,” adding that he was “significantly troubled by that statement.”

The Kanarek family lawyer, Edward David, said she sustained damages to her chest and lungs and that “doctors have performed several medical procedures to enable her to breathe.”

“Right now the family is focused solely on her recovery,” David added.

Goodwin underwent surgery on Tuesday to repair a broken hand sustained when he tackled Barisone to the ground in a “brawl” following the shooting, David said. Goodwin was in court Wednesday morning, his hand heavily bandaged from his forearm over his fingers. He declined to comment following the hearing.

Barisone was also injured in a tussle following the shooting. His arm was in a heavy sling and he had two healing black eyes, although his specific injuries were unclear.

Both Kanarek and Barisone are accomplished equestrians. Kanarek had won several national medals, and Barisone was a member of the 2008 United States Olympic team in Beijing. He also coached 2016 Olympic bronze medalist in dressage, Alison Brock.

Barisone has been suspended from equestrian competition by SafeSport, the independent agency that oversees abuse complaints in the national athletic federations that govern Olympic sports, such as the United States Equestrian Federation.

It is a violation of SafeSport code to have any pending criminal procedures against an athlete. A SafeSport representative declined to comment on Barisone's arrest, citing policy.