Black guy talking to white girl? Break his jaw!

[SirNitram]

Link

August 17, 2011 (WEST CHICAGO, Ill.) (WLS) -- Family members of a man severely beaten at a party in West Chicago last weekend say the attack was racially motivated.

The alleged victim is black. The three men charged in the case are white.

Christopher Phillips, 19, says he spent seven hours in the emergency room and another five hours in surgery getting a wire implanted in his jaw.

However, he says what he sees as the motive behind the alleged assault is worse than his injuries.

Phillips showed ABC 7 his injuries: a fractured jaw, four missing teeth, and cuts and bruises on his body.

"That was probably the worst pain I've ever felt in my entire life," said Phillips.

Phillips, a College of DuPage student, says he was beaten early Sunday morning at a late-night house party in suburban West Chicago. He says he was the only African-American at the party when he was confronted by Thomas Randich, 19, after speaking to a young woman.

"He was like, 'Yeah, you're talking to the wrong girl.' I was like, I looked at him - I'm confused - I was like, 'What do you mean I'm talking to the wrong girl?'" said Phillips.

Phillips says after a heated argument, tempers cooled, but when he turned to walk away, he says was punched from behind and hit the concrete floor with his face. He says he was then kicked and punched repeatedly.

"There was no reason and no excuse, I don't care what it was, for you to put your hands on anybody - nobody deserves that - nobody," said Phillips's mother, Sandra Smith-Phillips.

Randich, his brother Jake, 18, and Michael Mungovan, 19, have all been charged with aggravated battery.

Phillips says as the three men were leaving, he heard at least two male voices shouting racial slurs.

"It's like, 'This is what that N gets,' and, 'These Ns think they can do anything,'" said Christopher Phillips.

"He was talking to a white girl, and they didn't like it. And they jumped on him," said Phillips's father, LaMonte Phillips.

On Wednesday, the DuPage County State's Attorney declined to offer details about the beating, saying they continue to investigate and that additional charges are possible.

"You can't disguise it. It is what it is. It's a hate crime. They let that be known," said Christopher Phillips.

Mungovan, one of the suspects, is free on $200,000 bond. He did not return a call from ABC 7, but his father did talk to us and denied that his son was involved in the alleged beating. He said his son was misidentified by witnesses at the scene.

ABC 7 could not reach the two other suspects, Thomas and Jake Randich, who remained behind bars Wednesday night.

Frankly, nothing would surprise me about this being true. The fact it's not in the South means nothing.

[The Romulan Republic]

No, it wouldn't surprise me either. A sad part of reality is that racists continue to exist, and some of them go beyond mere thought or speech and act on those foul beliefs.

I hope these scum are in prison for a long time either way.

[Kingmaker]

The Daily Herald claims that Tom Randich was the girl's boyfriend, so it could just be a case of violent jealousy. A couple of classy guys either way.

[StarSword]

I thought we'd be more tolerant in this day and age. I guess stupidity and ignorance will never go out of style.

[Block]

The Daily Herald claims that Tom Randich was the girl's boyfriend, so it could just be a case of violent jealousy. A couple of classy guys either way.

Wouldn't shock me at all. People tend to sink to the lowest possible level of insults where jealousy is involved.

[PeZook]

The Daily Herald claims that Tom Randich was the girl's boyfriend, so it could just be a case of violent jealousy. A couple of classy guys either way.

I just read an extremely similar article in "Detective", a Polish crime magazine.

Only there it ended with a guy getting stabbed.

Either way, the reason for the assault could actually be both jealousy and racism. I've talked to people who think that if their girlfriend cheated on them with a black guy it was somehow worse than her doing that with a white guy.

[madd0ct0r]

small white male syndrome.

emphasis on small.

[Zaune]

small white male syndrome.

emphasis on small.

All of him, or just certain bits that popular mythology casts black men as being naturally superior in?

[Skgoa]

The Daily Herald claims that Tom Randich was the girl's boyfriend, so it could just be a case of violent jealousy. A couple of classy guys either way.

In my experience, it doesn't really matter whether they were in a relationship or he was "only" attracted to her. Men - especially insecure ones - can be fiercely possessive and agressive when they think someone is "stealing their woman".

[Kamakazie Sith]

small white male syndrome.

emphasis on small.

How about racist syndrome? Unless you are actually saying that all small white males act like this? (hint your statement was bigoted)

[TheHammer]

I see no conclusive evidence of this being racially motivated in the least

August 17, 2011 (WEST CHICAGO, Ill.) (WLS) -- Family members of a man severely beaten at a party in West Chicago last weekend say the attack was racially motivated.

The alleged victim is black. The three men charged in the case are white.

So?

Christopher Phillips, 19, says he spent seven hours in the emergency room and another five hours in surgery getting a wire implanted in his jaw.

However, he says what he sees as the motive behind the alleged assault is worse than his injuries.

Phillips showed ABC 7 his injuries: a fractured jaw, four missing teeth, and cuts and bruises on his body.

"That was probably the worst pain I've ever felt in my entire life," said Phillips.

Clearly, he took a hell of a beating. And people should be charged in this case. But they should be charged appropriately.

Phillips, a College of DuPage student, says he was beaten early Sunday morning at a late-night house party in suburban West Chicago. He says he was the only African-American at the party when he was confronted by Thomas Randich, 19, after speaking to a young woman.

"He was like, 'Yeah, you're talking to the wrong girl.' I was like, I looked at him - I'm confused - I was like, 'What do you mean I'm talking to the wrong girl?'" said Phillips.

All quotes from Phillips, so you have to take all of them with a grain of salt. Uncooberated, they are still he-said/he-said

Phillips says after a heated argument, tempers cooled, but when he turned to walk away, he says was punched from behind and hit the concrete floor with his face. He says he was then kicked and punched repeatedly.

Argument leads to a fight. Film at 11.

"There was no reason and no excuse, I don't care what it was, for you to put your hands on anybody - nobody deserves that - nobody," said Phillips's mother, Sandra Smith-Phillips.

Randich, his brother Jake, 18, and Michael Mungovan, 19, have all been charged with aggravated battery.

Sandra is right. There is no excuse for delivering the beating that they did. The charges seem perfectly warranted. If 3 guys jumped 1 other guy for talking to one of the first 3's girlfriend, then they should be charged with aggravated battery. However that doesn't mean it was racially motivated.

Phillips says as the three men were leaving, he heard at least two male voices shouting racial slurs.

"It's like, 'This is what that N gets,' and, 'These Ns think they can do anything,'" said Christopher Phillips.

That would seem odd that during the argument, and during the fight he doesn't remember hearing any racial slurs, yet he supposedly heard "at least two male voices" shouting slurs as they were leaving. So he doesn't even know if the guy or guys that beat him made them... Again, it would be nice to have some cooberation that the statements were even made since the only people we hear from in this article are the victim and the victim's family.

"He was talking to a white girl, and they didn't like it. And they jumped on him," said Phillips's father, LaMonte Phillips.

No, he was talking to a guys girlfriend and apparently an argument broke out when he was asked to stop that lead to a fight. That happens whether you are black, white, yellow, green or purple. Just read the sunday morning police beat in your local newspaper to find out that much.

On Wednesday, the DuPage County State's Attorney declined to offer details about the beating, saying they continue to investigate and that additional charges are possible.

"You can't disguise it. It is what it is. It's a hate crime. They let that be known," said Christopher Phillips.

Again, no evidence of it being a "hate" crime. Not one of a racial nature anyway. I've seen the race card played for too many times when it should not be to simply accept the statements of the victim and the victim's father at face value.

Mungovan, one of the suspects, is free on $200,000 bond. He did not return a call from ABC 7, but his father did talk to us and denied that his son was involved in the alleged beating. He said his son was misidentified by witnesses at the scene.

ABC 7 could not reach the two other suspects, Thomas and Jake Randich, who remained behind bars Wednesday night.

I'm reserving any further judgement until I hear from the defendants, and or from other third parties who witnessed the fight.

[SirNitram]

'Argument leads to fight. Ho hum' except, those of us with reading comprehension see that it explicitly states 'tempers cooled, and the guy supposedly instigating it walked away. THEN he got his ass beaten.' I can see how this might confuse idiots. Or merely be useful to the massive dishonest. And what would you think if the violent assholes who did this claimed it wasn't racist? Beleive them? Colour me unimpressed with this post, Hammer.

[Mr. Coffee]

Yeah, Nitram, totally racially motivated! I mean,we've got this guy's story, and never mind that it doesn't really make any sense and reeks of race card bullshit, his word MUST be good and we should totally snap a judgement based solely on his story without asking for witnesses to back it up or give the other people involved a chance to tell their side of things!

Seriously, Nitram, just shut the fuck up.

[TheHammer]

'Argument leads to fight. Ho hum' except, those of us with reading comprehension see that it explicitly states 'tempers cooled, and the guy supposedly instigating it walked away. THEN he got his ass beaten.' I can see how this might confuse idiots. Or merely be useful to the massive dishonest. And what would you think if the violent assholes who did this claimed it wasn't racist? Beleive them? Colour me unimpressed with this post, Hammer.

Don't fucking condescend to me asshole. I read it just fine. The key part YOU should have noted of that passage was "Phillips says" meaning its entirely his side of it. Even if, from his point of view he was telling the truth, the obvious fucking answer is that tempers hadn't really "cooled". Or the victim made a smartass comment as he was walking away. We don't know since the only point of view represented is that of the victim, who I'm sure is giving us an unbiased and impartial accounting of what happened. Either way, it is irrelevant as clearly the dude was still pissed off about it. If it had been a white dude hitting on his girlfriend, he had come over and told him to stop (in some manner) and an argument broke out, an assbeating was likely to be handed out to the white guy without the bullshit sensationalism I see here.

Plenty of white on white, black on black etc fights happen over one guy talking to another guy's girl. You mix egos, alcohol, and testosterone and that's what happens. Don't get me wrong, I'm not condoning what the guy did. I'm just saying you can't call it "racist" simply because the victim was black and the one sided story we get in this article. It stinks of convict first, get the facts later and skew them to fit your preconcieved notions.

[Darth Wong]

It is certainly true that we should wait for more information to come in before assuming that the beating victim's story is entirely true. After all, if he did something to provoke the attack, he certainly wouldn't describe it that way himself to the press, and the other guys aren't talking to the press because they're already on the hook for assault and their lawyers have undoubtedly told them to shut the fuck up.

Having said that, the Midwest is not really that much different from the South. It's Tea Party territory.

[ChaserGrey]

It is certainly true that we should wait for more information to come in before assuming that the beating victim's story is entirely true. After all, if he did something to provoke the attack, he certainly wouldn't describe it that way himself to the press, and the other guys aren't talking to the press because they're already on the hook for assault and their lawyers have undoubtedly told them to shut the fuck up.

Especially since these guys aren't choir boys and they're in deep shit, to put it mildly on both counts. Unless the victim's story is completely made up (which I discount since I believe he has documented injuries consistent with the story), they're almost shoo-ins for assault and battery. If Mr. Phillips is so inclined he also has a bang-up case for a personal injury suit against them for medical bills, lost wages, &c. Even if he's poor, for a case like this I'd be stunned if you couldn't find a lawyer to take it on a contingency basis.

"Anything you say can and will be used against you" isn't just for when you're talking to the cops. You can bet the DA has someone reading press coverage, and if it comes to a civil suit the plaintiff's lawyer will go over everything you've ever said about the incident with a fine-toothed comb. These guys won't be giving their side unless they're even more foolish than they appear, and that would be very foolish indeed.

I'd say we'll find out at the trial, but I doubt this will go to trial unless the DA thinks he can win some kind of hate crimes charge and wants to make an example. Otherwise they'll just cop a plea and be off to jail.

Having said that, the Midwest is not really that much different from the South. It's Tea Party territory.

I wouldn't rule out a racial motive either. I think it's likely we'll never know for sure.

[Surlethe]

Also remember that the North has always been almost as racist as the South, just not usually so open about it. Chicago's response to Martin Luther King Jr. was worse than anything he got in the South.

[Broomstick]

Chicago has long been and still is one of the most racially segregated cities in the US. Violent fights over a woman dating across racial lines are common around here. Less than a month ago, just down the block from where I live, two young men drew guns and fired on one another - one was a black man dating a white girl, and the other man the girl's brother. Both men died within 24 hours of that, and the white man's last words were along the lines of he wasn't going to let a n----- fuck his little sister any more.

So yes, it is entirely plausible that this could be something similar. It is also impossible to know from the information given if, in fact, that is the truth of the matter. There is no proof.

On the flip side, last winter a black woman in the building next to mine had her car burned by a black man in her building who was furious that she was dating a white man. It cuts both ways, you know. Men of one "tribe" get angry that men of another "tribe" are taking "their" women. Around Chicago there's almost more tolerance of homosexual couples than mixed race couples, and the further out in the suburbs you go the worse it gets.

[Darth Wong]

I wouldn't lump in the Midwest with "the North", because usually when we speak of the North, we actually mean the Northeast. The culture is really a lot different; the Midwest is a Tea Party bastion after all.

[Meest]

The picture of the white guy isn't helping, name doesn't sound Italian but looks like typical guido douche. When these losers get into gangster mode it's ironic that they start acting like the stereotypes they "hate". Is this a higher class area of Chicago, no ideas on the schools they mention? Some of them got some pretty high bonds posted.

[Broomstick]

Meh, DuPage County is part suburb, part rural. Wouldn't call it high class, but it's not a ghetto either. Blue collar tradesmen, white collar professionals who commute into Chicago proper to work, and farmers.

College of DuPage is a community college - certificate programs, occupational degrees, and a program for those getting basic academic requirements before transferring to a four-year college for Bachelor degrees.

[GuppyShark]

The picture of the white guy isn't helping, name doesn't sound Italian but looks like typical guido douche.

...

You're right, it's not an Italian name.

If it was, your point would be...?

[TheHammer]

The picture of the white guy isn't helping, name doesn't sound Italian but looks like typical guido douche.

...

You're right, it's not an Italian name.

If it was, your point would be...?

I think he was trying to say the Italian Guido Douches are racist...

[Darth Wong]

I think it's more telling that one of the suspects is already free on a $200,000 bond. Oh yeah, your precious little baby was seen by a party full of witnesses committing felony assault, and you promptly plunk down 200 grand to get him out instead of letting him sit in jail to learn his lesson? Can you say "spoiled douchebag?"

[PhilosopherOfSorts]

You only have to put up ten percent of whatever the bond is set at, so only twenty grand, but still. I've had friends locked up on similar bonds, and their familys didn't have any choice but to let them sit, not being able to come up with that kind of money on less than a year's notice.