We’ve seen the video, we know what happened to Deandre Harris. But for some reason a magistrate in Charlottesville decided to listen to the complaints by White Supremacist Harold Crews and charge Harris with assault for swinging a flashlight at Crews while he was in the midst of trying to ram the end of a flagpole into another person.
Deandre Harris, a black man beaten and later charged with assaulting a white nationalist during the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville last August, was found not guilty Friday.
After footage of Harris’ beating at the rally went viral, Harold Crews, a North Carolina lawyer and chairman of the state’s The League of the South, brought the battery charge against the man whose assault became an anti-racist rallying cry.
Shortly after the rally, Crews convinced a magistrate to file charges against Harris, who swung a flashlight at him while under the impression the white nationalist lawyer was assaulting his friend with a flagpole. Charlottesville General District Court Judge Robert Downer determined that Harris swung the flashlight accidentally.
I’m thinking this is what White Privilege looks like. Twenty guys can beat you to a near pulp on camera and no body gets arrested or goes to court, but if you a young black guy who swings a flashlight at an old racist white guy — while he’s in the act of assaulting someone else — that’s enough to generate a court case.
Harris is just lucky that he he dodged this particular bullet because losing this case could have led to 12 Months in Jail and a $2.500 fine, which would go just wonderful with his cracked scull.
As I previously highlighted in this case — here is the relevant video showing the scuffle between Harris, Crews and others which just preceeded the violent mass assault on Harris, which Supremacists claim was bizarrely not self-defense.
In a case that started and ended today, the Judge determined that Harris flashlight swing was not a criminal act — and poof — case over.
Shortly after that confrontation, this happened:
Yet so far only the following people have been held responsible for the violence during the rally.
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The driver of the car, 20-year-old James Alex Fields Jr was arrested shortly after the incident and was charged with second-degree murder [which has since been upgraded to 1st degree Murder since it was discovered that protesters had planned their violence ahead of time], three counts of malicious wounding, and one count of hit-and-run.
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In connection with the events at Charlottesville today, police made three additional arrests.
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Troy Dunigan, 21, was charged with disorderly conduct.
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Jacob L Smith, 21, was charged with misdemeanour assault and battery.
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James M O'Brien, 41, was charged with carrying a concealed gun.
If only so many other situations like this could be resolved so quickly and so easily. For example — how are the cases against the guys who beat Harris to a bloody pulp going?
Where are the arrests for all those guys?
Friday, Mar 16, 2018 · 8:10:56 PM +00:00
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Frank Vyan Walton
Well, there has been at least one arrest in the attack on Harris — finally.
An arrest has finally been made in the brutal attack of Deandre Harris that occurred during the Unite the Right racist rally in Charlottesville, Va. Police arrested Mason, Ohio, resident Daniel Borden, 18, Friday evening and charged him with malicious wounding, according to WCPO.
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Other people of interest have been identified from photos and video that were taken before and after the attack, but it looks as if everyone’s favorite “I’m not racist because I’m ‘Spanish’” racist is also a suspect.
I do recall there was a big push to have these people identified led by Shaun King, some of them were.
Friday, Mar 16, 2018 · 8:15:08 PM +00:00
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Frank Vyan Walton
The Root seems to be covering this well, they note there have been 4 arrest of those who attacked Harris.
A fourth suspect has been arrested in the brutal attack of Deandre Harris, who was seriously injured while protesting the deadly white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Va., in August.
Tyler Watkins Davis, 49, is facing charges of malicious wounding in the incident last year. Officers with the Clay County, Fla., Sheriff’s Department arrested Davis in Middleburg, Fla., and he is currently being held in the county jail pending extradition to Charlottesville, according to a press release from the Charlottesville Police Department, WVIR NBC 29 notes.
SPLC has more details on the other 3 defendants so far.
Jacob Scott Goodwin, Daniel Patrick Borden, 18, and Alex Michael Ramos, 33, were charged with "malicious wounding" in connection with an assault at the rally. All three have pleaded not guilty to malicious wounding.