WHITE PLAINS (AP) - A former state Assembly candidate has dropped assault charges against a Republican lawyer accused of head-butting him at a White Plains restaurant.

A judge dismissed the charge against Anthony Mangone on Friday. Prosecutors say Massimo DiFabio, who is also a lawyer, had withdrawn his complaint.

The 35-year-old Mangone was charged in the Dec. 23 brawl at BLT Steak, a restaurant at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel. DiFabio told police that Mangone pushed him to the ground and later head-butted him in the face, leaving him with a split lip and bloody nose.

DiFabio wrote Westchester County prosecutors asking that the charges be dismissed.

DiFabio, a Republican, lost an 88th District Assembly race in 2000. Mangone was once a top aide to former state Sen. Nicholas Spano.