Court documents show a Colorado man is facing possible bias-motivated charges for allegedly attacking a television news reporter after demanding to know whether he was a citizen, saying “This is Trump’s America now."

Summary

Patrick Thomas Egan, 39, was arrested in Colorado for allegedly attacking TV reporter Ja’Ronn Alex, demanding to know if Alex was a U.S. citizen and declaring, “This is Trump’s America now.”

Police say Egan followed Alex’s vehicle for 40 miles, confronted him at his news station, and tackled him, putting him in a headlock that left Alex struggling to breathe.

The attack is being investigated as a possible bias-motivated crime.

Egan faces charges of assault and harassment, with prosecutors yet to file formal charges.

  • AA5B@lemmy.world
    2241·
    12 days ago

    They used to be called “hate crimes”. Why are we soft peddling violent racism like this

  • Noite_Etion@lemmy.world
    1531·
    12 days ago

    Alex, who had been out reporting, then drove back to his news station in the city. After he got out of his vehicle, Egan chased Alex as he ran toward the station’s door and demanded to see his identification, according to the document laying out police’s evidence in the case. Egan then tackled Alex, put him in a headlock and “began to strangle him,” the affidavit said.

    He followed him, chased him down and proceeded to strangle him, and they still needed to determine if this was a “bias-motivated crime”.

    • Skvlp@lemm.ee
      751·
      12 days ago

      He said it - “it’s Trumps USA now”. Get ready for a whole lot of fecal matter hitting the air circulation device…

    • kent_eh@lemmy.caEnglish
      111·
      12 days ago

      and they still needed to determine if this was a “bias-motivated crime”.

      As is always the case, police need to be as neutral as possible in their public statements so they don’t accidentally cause a mistrial by saying something that could be perceived as bias.

      By not calling the guy out as a racist piece of shit, they’re making sure the judge won’t be forced to dismiss the case.

  • BonesOfTheMoon@lemmy.world
    59·
    11 days ago

    But a woman who got mad for having a claim denied for health care coverage THAT SHE PAYS FOR and saying something in anger, well that’s a big problem, but stalking someone for 40 miles and strangling them is cool, right conservatives?

    • Xbeam@lemmy.world
      36·
      12 days ago

      This should be a thing. Every time something horrific happens it needs to be labeled as “Trump’s America.”

      And I don’t mean things like natural disasters. Increases in hate, poverty, brutality. Things that Trump stands for and causes.

  • pivot_root@lemmy.world
    44·
    12 days ago

    “This is Trump’s America now”

    Last I checked, Biden is still the acting president for another week and a half. Egan is both a bigot and a fucking dumbass.

    • frunch@lemmy.world
      23·
      12 days ago

      You’d think Trump was already in office though. I’ve been seeing headlines detailing Trump’s and musk’s political maneuver’s ever since he won the election. They’re already calling shots for the gop, setting things up for the day they are in complete control. Biden doing fuck-all at this point really doesn’t help matters either. I would hope he’d at least make things difficult for Trump’s transition but i don’t think that’s happening.

      • kent_eh@lemmy.caEnglish
        5·
        12 days ago

        I’ve been seeing headlines detailing Trump’s and musk’s political maneuver’s ever since he won the election

        Since before the election.

        Trump told Republicans to kill the bipartisan border bill long before the election.

    • WhatSay@slrpnk.netEnglish
      3·
      12 days ago

      He’s just ahead of the curve, get ready for more of this stupid dangerous stuff soon.

  • leadore@lemmy.world
    37·
    12 days ago

    Wait, I think I’ve figured it out! All minorities need to get jobs at health insurance companies ASAP! That way any magats who threaten or attack you will be prosecuted as terrorists going after the health insurance companies.

    • Vash63@lemmy.world
      7·
      11 days ago

      No no no, you’re confused. The field the company is in doesn’t matter. What matters is if that you get to a C-level position.

      • leadore@lemmy.world
        2·
        11 days ago

        I’m thinking of the woman who said over the phone in response to her claim being denied, “deny, delay depose, you’re next” or something close to that. She was talking to a regular employee at the health insurance company and was immediately arrested and charged, could get something like 10 years in prison. So you don’t have to be a high-level employee.

        edit: rechecked the details and found:

        Boston was ultimately charged with threats to conduct a mass shooting or an act of terrorism, with a bond set at $100,000, as first reported by local station WFLA. That’s a second degree felony, punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

      • aesthelete@lemmy.world
        2·
        11 days ago

        But if you make it to a c-level position as a minority in a company the same crowd will spend all day everyday talking about how you’re a DEI hire.

        So heads racists, tails bigots I guess.

        • Vash63@lemmy.world
          1·
          11 days ago

          It’s not that hard to become über wealthy, you just need to be born from über wealthy parents. Simple.

    • MaxTheMummer@lemm.eeEnglish
      5·
      11 days ago

      To really make Republican heads explode, everyone who’s not a Republican needs a small arsenal of AR-15s.

  • peregrin5@lemm.eeEnglish
    323·
    12 days ago

    Buy (or 3d print) a gun for your own safety if you are a minority.

    • Flying Squid@lemmy.world
      64·
      12 days ago

      I honestly would not trust a 3D printed gun. Even after some successful uses, there have still been plenty of fuckups.

      I think guns are a case where precision machine tooling is a good idea.

      Edit: Am I really getting downvoted for suggesting if people get a gun, they get one that was made with precision milling? Would you downvote me for saying people probably shouldn’t assemble their own cars out of 3D printed parts either?

          • Forester@pawb.socialEnglish
            1·
            11 days ago

            Well you may have just moved to Britain but with your knowledge of handguns I would assume you were born there. Guns are dangerous tools. Yes. The kid didn’t shoot himself in the leg because of the 3D printed parts. He shot himself in the leg because he fumbled a partially assembled and cocked handgun that for some inexplicably stupid reason he had decided to load with a single round.

            Due to a large amount of very stupid laws by a couple of different three-letter agencies, a handgun is actually defined as the frame that holds all the pressure bearing parts and not the pressure bearing parts themselves.

            So he printed the hand grip basically and then put the upper assembly of a standard normal factory assembled upper of a firearm inside of that.

            • Flying Squid@lemmy.world
              1·
              11 days ago

              Are you really trying to argue with me that a tool which requires precision doesn’t have to be made with precision?

              I mean for fuck’s sake, this isn’t even a gun control argument on my part, it’s a “be wise with what you have” argument.

              You go ahead and 3D print all the guns you want though. Just don’t come crying to me if one of them blows up in your hand because of a faulty print. Righteous indignation is the important thing here.

              • Forester@pawb.socialEnglish
                1·
                11 days ago

                No, I’m telling you that the tool that was made with precision was inserted into a plastic handguard that was 3D printed. The upper assembly and pressure bearing parts of the firearm were assembled in a factory

                Try reading what I wrote again or you know maybe reading your own article first

                • Flying Squid@lemmy.world
                  1·
                  11 days ago

                  Cool. It’s still generally a bad idea to 3D print a gun. You should get one made professionally for basic safety reasons. I provided a whole other link you’re ignoring.

  • Muddybulldog@lemmy.worldEnglish
    18·
    11 days ago

    As a former Marine, fuck this guy. He’s so lost his way with regard to what he’s actually supposed to be standing for.

    • skuzz@discuss.tchncs.de
      12·
      11 days ago

      I appreciate former Marines like yourself coming out across the socials to say this. We should be normalizing the good of what you volunteered to do, and its purpose. These crazies need to learn what they apparently completely missed, and that they are dishonoring the military position they served.