Dodger Stadium beating victim released from hospital

A San Francisco Giants fan who was badly beaten at Dodger Stadium on Opening Day in an attack that touched off a furor in Los Angeles was released from a hospital on Tuesday, doctors said.

Bryan Stow, who suffered a skull fracture in the March attack, was transferred to a facility specializing in treating brain-injured patients, Dr. Geoff Manley, chief of neurosurgery at San Francisco General Hospital, said in a statement.

Bryan has been an extremely challenging patient, Manley said. It has been a roller-coaster, but he is young and strong and has made tremendous advances.

The assault on Stow, a 42-year-old paramedic and father of two, was met with outrage in Los Angeles, where critics said city officials and Dodgers owner Frank McCourt failed to provide adequate security at the stadium.

The furor came as McCourt fought his ex-wife, Jamie, and Major League Baseball to retain control of the troubled franchise. The Stow family sued McCourt and the Dodgers in May, claiming that poor stadium security created the perfect opportunity for the attack.

McCourt filed for bankruptcy in June and an attorney representing Stow was named to a creditors committee.

We feel immense relief today, knowing that Bryan is ready to start the next chapter of his story, the Stow family said in a written statement.

Though we won't miss the hospital, we will miss the people at San Francisco General, the family said. Everyone there has been so wonderful and kind to us, and we know that Dr. Manley and the team have given Bryan the best care possible.

Stow, a Giants fan who drove 300 miles from Santa Cruz for the Opening Day game, was set upon in the parking lot after the game by two men wearing Dodgers gear.

He suffered a traumatic brain injury that required doctors to remove part of his skull. Manley replaced that skull fragment with a prosthetic bone flap on August 10.

Louie Sanchez, 29, and Marvin Norwood, 31, were arrested in in July in the attack and charged with mayhem, assault likely to cause great bodily injury and battery. Both men have pleaded not guilty pending trial.