Woman Yells Racial Slur at Family Celebrating Birthday Party
Jose "Joe" Torres (left) weeps in his seat during his sentencing at the Douglas County Courthouse in Douglasville, Ga., on Monday. Superior Court Judge William McClain sentenced Torres and Kayla Norton to lengthy prison house terms Mon for their role in the disruption of a black child's birthday party through the use of Confederate boxing flags, racial slurs and armed threats. Henry P. Taylor/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP hibernate caption
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Henry P. Taylor/Atlanta Periodical-Constitution via AP
Jose "Joe" Torres (left) weeps in his seat during his sentencing at the Douglas Canton Courthouse in Douglasville, Ga., on Monday. Superior Court Judge William McClain sentenced Torres and Kayla Norton to lengthy prison terms Mon for their role in the disruption of a black child's birthday party through the use of Confederate battle flags, racial slurs and armed threats.
Henry P. Taylor/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP
A Georgia judge has sentenced Kayla Norton, 25, and Jose "Joe" Torres, 26, to spend a combined xix years in prison for their role in a group'due south racist rampage at an eight-year-one-time's altogether party — an assault that included shouting racial slurs, making armed threats and waving Amalgamated battle flags.
"I'g so distressing that happened to you lot," Norton told the family that endured the assault, weeping in the courtroom at Monday's sentencing. "I am and then lamentable."
After telling the court that she accepted responsibility for her actions, Norton turned to the surface area of the court where families who attended the birthday party were seated.
"But I want you all to know that that is not me," Norton told them. "That is not me."
Norton and Torres, who are not married, take iii children together. Prosecutors say they were part of a gang of white supremacists who targeted African-Americans with racist taunts and threatened to murder minorities.
In court Monday, both Norton and Torres saturday hunched over and crying later Superior Courtroom Approximate William "Beau" McClain handed downwardly his sentence: xiii years in prison and 7 years' probation for Torres, and six years in prison with nine years' probation for Norton. Both of them are as well banished from Douglas County, McClain said.
The sentencing comes weeks subsequently a jury establish Torres and Norton guilty of making terroristic threats and violating the Georgia Street Gang Terrorism and Prevention Act. The jury as well convicted Torres of aggravated assault. Although Georgia doesn't have a law specifying a hate criminal offence, that's the term both McClain and Commune Chaser Brian Fortner used to depict the group's behavior.
The assault occurred in July 2015, i month later on a racist gunman killed nine worshippers at a historically black church in Charleston, S.C. Prosecutors say Norton, Torres and other members of a group that called itself "Respect the Flag" went on an alcohol-fueled racist spree in Douglas and Paulding counties, westward of Atlanta.
With Confederate battle flags affixed to the beds of their pickup trucks, the group gathered for a ride that was purportedly meant to gloat the flag's heritage.
"However, Paulding County 911 began immediately receiving calls that members associated with this group were threatening African American citizens at various locations in Paulding County and hurling numerous racial slurs in the process as well," according to the Douglas County District Attorney'south Office.
Later on threatening black motorists, the group headed to Douglasville, where they happened upon an outdoor altogether party that included a cookout and bouncy castle.
"Victims and witnesses from the party, who were predominantly African-American, testified to observing the grouping of trucks whose passengers were hurling a litany of racial slurs at them as they passed by," prosecutors said.
Several members of the grouping — some of whom are now serving prison terms of their own — got out of their trucks and approached the partygoers, threatening to kill them all. Co-ordinate to their fellow defendants and witnesses, information technology was Norton who retrieved Torres' shotgun — a tactical 12-estimate with a pistol grip — and loaded information technology before giving it to him.
Cellphone footage from the political party shows law attempting to grade a barrier in forepart of the families as the trucks drove off.
During his trial, Torres told the court he was carrying the shotgun for this ain defense force. Just he then acknowledged lying to police about the gun — and to selling the weapon before he was arrested.
Months later the attack, the "Respect the Flag" group was indicted as a street gang by a Douglas County g jury.
"They recognized that it was non about flying a flag just it was about pointing a shotgun at other people and threatening to impale them because of the colour of their skin," Fortner said Monday.
Testifying for the victims at Mon's sentencing, Hyesha Bryant, who attended the party, said she forgave the couple.
"I never thought this would be something I'd have to suffer in 2017," Bryant said, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "As adults and parents, we take to instill in our children the values of right and wrong. That moment you had to cull to get out, you stayed."
"I forgive you lot. I forgive all of yous," she said, as Torres and Norton sat weeping. "I don't take whatever hate in my heart. Life is also short for that."
The stiff punishment is existence both celebrated and questioned, in a debate that touches on complimentary oral communication and the nature of terrorism.
Some of those points are summed up in ii acme-rated responses to the district attorney'due south Facebook posting that announced the punishment.
One commenter writes:
"To all the people on hither saying the punishment was unjust. Permit's exist existent, if it had been any other terrorist group committing these felonies you guys wouldn't bat an eye if they went away for life.... but when the terrorist look like you lot all suddenly you lot become a soft centre."
Just another commenter says:
"Did they actually attack anyone or just guilty of existence racists? Not palliating their deportment by any means but I'1000 non sure the punishment fit the crime here. If they attacked the kids or something, let them rot, simply but beingness ignorant racists shouldn't constitute a 20 year sentence. Does that not seem a piddling extreme?? What am I missing? If anybody in Douglas County that is ignorant and racist (on both sides of the fence) had to serve xx years, they'd take to build many new jails."
Source: https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/02/28/517688757/racist-assault-on-a-childs-birthday-party-yields-long-prison-terms-in-georgia
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