Two adults in Indiana have been charged with multiple felony counts after they allegedly committed a vehicular attack against two minors who were riding their bicycles along the side of the road, in what very much appears to be a politically-motivated assault. The local press has some of the details of the incident, which also included violent threats made on camera. This is ugly, dangerous stuff:
Felony charges have been filed against a Hobart couple accused of running twin boys off the road because they had pro-Trump flags attached to their bicycles, authorities said. Snapchat videos helped officers secure charges against Kyren Gregory Perry-Jones, 23, and Cailyn Marie Smith, 18, in connection with a July 22 incident, police said. "Y'all scared, just like your president ... America is not great, (expletive)," Smith could allegedly be heard saying on a Snapchat video obtained by police during the incident. At one point, Perry-Jones asked one of the boys if he was a Trump fan, and he said he was, records state. Perry-Jones and Smith have each been charged with two counts of intimidation and criminal recklessness, all felonies. They were also charged with one count each of theft and criminal mischief, which are misdemeanors, court records show.
Here are the suspects:
Indiana couple drove boys with Trump flags off road: police https://t.co/RrFA79zt0S pic.twitter.com/IdG4qQk4Nb
— FOX 32 News (@fox32news) February 21, 2020
As I mentioned, much of the encounter was caught on camera by the perpetrators, who helpfully documented not only their own crimes but also the threats they leveled -- including to lie about racial slurs:
Snapchat video obtained by police shows the Malibu, driven by Perry-Jones, swerve the wheels sharply "as if he saw the boys and wanted to hit them with the vehicle" while yelling, "'Y'all better get home,'" court records state. Perry-Jones and Smith allegedly yelled expletives at the two teen boys and demanded that they "pull that flag down" in the video, police said. Perry-Jones allegedly threatened to beat the boys up for calling 911, court records state. In the video, Perry-Jones also said that if police questioned him about it, he would just say the boys called him a racial slur. During the encounter, Perry-Jones allegedly drove his car through several yards, chasing them. One of the boys told detectives Smith snatched their flag while filming the video, so they chased after the car. Only after the boys threatened to call police did the couple drop the flag and intentionally run it over with their vehicle before fleeing the area, records state.
I'll reiterate two points I made earlier this month, in covering another violent vehicular attack perpetrated by a leftist motivated by political animus against Trump supporters: First, the terrible actions of specific individuals do not represent their entire "side" of the ideological or partisan spectrum, and it's unfair to exploit awful incidents to score cheap points and blame the rhetoric or beliefs of non-violent opponents. Such guilt by association is a cynical and demagogic silencing tactic. And second, if two adult Trump supporters had done exactly this to two Democratic minors, especially if there were a racial component at play, it would be a major national story. You know it, and I know it. The president's 'climate of hate' would be blamed. Journalists would be demanding comment from Republican politicians from all over the country. And every Democratic candidate for president would have issued statements and tweets about it. But much like the recent episode in Florida, coverage of this alleged crime has received relatively muted coverage. Our self-appointed civility cops are off duty.
I'll also note that in both the Florida and Indiana cases, the alleged assailants made videos of their own assaults, which strongly suggests to me that they were convinced of their own righteousness; they likely either wanted to re-live the attacks, or expected to receive social approbation for their conduct, based on the 'badness' of their victims. Think about that. Finally, in case you missed it, I'll leave you with a brutal tweet that underscores just how quickly leftist violence can be flushed down the memory hole because "The Narrative" doesn't fit:
I can think of an example. https://t.co/KwuvyYgyGw
— Steve Scalise (@SteveScalise) February 20, 2020
Oh, and the Trump campaign reminds us that another pro-Trump minor was physically assaulted by an adult in New Hampshire this month. I'm sure a bunch of MAGA grown-ups attacking liberal kids would be met with similar crickets.
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