Two months after violent clash at UCLA protest, no charges against attackers

It’s been two months since a brutal attack by counter-protesters on a pro-Palestinian encampment at the University of California, Los Angeles, and despite many incidents being caught on camera and perpetrators being identified by volunteer investigators, not one person has been charged.

Meanwhile, in San Diego, two anti-fascist activists found guilty of conspiracy are each sentenced to two years in prison.

It’s the week in extremism, from USA TODAY.

Two months since UCLA attack, no charges yet

In the early hours of May 1, a mob of counter-protesters attacked a pro-Palestinian student encampment at UCLA. For hours, attackers sprayed chemical agents into the camp, launched fireworks at protesters and beat students and other protestors with sticks, all while campus security stood by.

In the days and weeks that followed, volunteer researchers identified several of the attackers and passed their identities on to investigators. UCLA leadership pledged to investigate the attack. “I committed to finding those responsible and bringing them to justice,” UCLA Chancellor Gene Block wrote in a May 6 statement.

But two months later, no charges have been brought. One man — Beverly Hills resident Edan On — was arrested last month, but the Los Angeles District Attorney declined to prosecute him, instead referring the case to the Los Angeles City Attorney.

The UCLA Police Department told USA TODAY the investigation into the attack is not concluded. “Investigations regarding other crimes are ongoing, and we aren’t able to provide any details about the timing of future arrests,” UCLA Police Captain Scott Scheffler wrote in an email.

The office of Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón had a similar message. A spokesperson told USA TODAY: “We want to assure everyone that our office remains committed to applying the law impartially and ensuring that justice is served based on the facts of each case.”

Regarding the On case, the spokesperson wrote: “We recognize the importance of the issues at stake and the strong feelings they evoke. The office’s decision is in no way a reflection of our stance on the broader issues surrounding the protest.”

But the delay in bringing the attackers to justice has been frustrating for the students and other protesters who were attacked. Thistle Boosinger, an artist and musician who joined the protest, was seriously injured during the May 1 attack. Boosinger said a counter-protester hit her hand with a piece of wood, breaking a bone, causing a cut that needed stitches and causing nerve damage.

Boosinger underwent surgery in May and is still wearing a brace to protect her hand. She said a detective interviewed her soon after the attack, but that she hasn’t heard anything since.

“The detective asked me very vaguely if I could pick someone out of a lineup, but she never asked me to actually do it,” Boosinger said. “I don't have any faith in the police."

San Diego Antifa trial sentencing

Two anti-fascict activists who were found guilty last month of conspiracy to riot against supporters of former President Donald Trump in San Diego in 2021 were each sentenced to two years in prison Friday in San Diego Superior Court.

The case was a watershed prosecution of the anti-fascist movement and experts said it could pave the way for future prosecutions of leftist activists across the country. Brian Lightfoot and Jeremy White were the last of 11 defendants charged by the San Diego dDistrict aAttorney after anti-fascists and pro-Trump protesters, including well-known local white supremacists, faced off against each other in Pacific Beach in January 2021. While the other nine defendants negotiated plea deals, Lightfoot and White took their cases to trial.

“My great-grandfather was the first in my family to be an anti-fascist. Today I follow proudly in his footsteps, combating fascism and white supremacy, hateful ideology and racist bigotry,” Jeremy White wrote in a statement to USA TODAY. “I have given years of my life to this cause, I have given my health and well-being, and now I offer up my freedom.”

Statistic of the week: 350

That’s how many defendants out of the first 1,400 charged in the Jan. 6 insurrection could see their cases affected by the Supreme Court’s decision Friday to limit the use of a federal law against obstruction of official proceedings. One of those defendants is Trump himself.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Two sentenced in Antifa case; no charges in UCLA protest clash