Hello everybody:

The latest issue of The Orange County Register is

reporting that the District Attorney's Office has

decided not to criminally prosecute Hal Netkin, the

Van Nuys bigot who drove the minivan that hit about

four people at the anti-Minuteman protest in Garden

Grove on May 25th. This is not a surprise to me since

the DA's office made the decision not to charge Netkin

with any crimes almost three weeks ago, but have been

sitting on this information ever since. Why? They

wanted things to cool down a bit after the Garden

Grove Police raided Theresa Dang's Westminster home

before they made their decision public.

But what I find very interesting is the comment that

Lt. Mike Handfield of the Garden Grove Police

Department supposedly made to The Register:

"Video footage emerged during the investigation

showing that two protesters might have been hit by a

side-view mirror, Lt. Mike Handfield said. One

protester was shown standing up after apparently being

hit, walking through the crowd with a megaphone and

returning to lay next to the other protester before

claiming to have been run over."

What Lt. Handfield hints is that the protesters were

faking their injuries. In essence, this is an attempt

to smear people. I knew this was coming, too. The

reputation of the Garden Grove Police Department has

been badly damaged by their mishandling of the May

25th demonstration, and their raids of homes for lost

flashlights and issuance of misdemeanor citations to

journalists who drop cigarette butts didn't make

things any better. So I guess they want to reclaim

some lost ground by smearing protesters, perhaps?

Well, I'm sorry Lt. Handfield, but I know as a fact

that a Registered Nurse at the anti-Minuteman protest

told persons struck by Netkin's minivan to stay on the

ground to avoid injuring themselves any further in

case bones and internal organs had been damaged. No

competent physician would ever allow anybody hit by a

moving vehicle to walk around until they've been

examined by a doctor or a paramedic.

In case anybody might have any doubts about this

claim, I have seen a videotape that the Orange County

District Attorney's Office released to a defendant

charged with an alleged criminal offense related to

the May 25th protest, and can tell you right now that

this Registered Nurse is clearly viewed in the tape

giving medical advice to the protester that Lt.

Handfield tries to smear. This tape was originally

given to the District Attorney's Office by the Garden

Grove Police, who incidently got it from a source

linked to people who support the Minutemen. (In fact,

Garden Grove Police are alleged to have gone out of

their way to contact racist groups linked to the

Minutemen to obtain videotape of the protesters; if

true, it puts into doubt their claim they are "neutral

party" trying to enforce the law in an "equal and fair

matter").

The real question that people need to ask now is this:

Is it the policy of the Garden Grove Police to smear

people who have been struck by automobiles? Do they

smear people who have been involved in other kinds of

accidents, as well? Does Lt. Handfield have

qualifications to diagnose people's injuries based on

what he sees on videotape? I thought his job was to

fight crime?

Sincerely,

Duane J. Roberts

duaneroberts92804@yahoo.com



http://www.ocregister.com/ocr/2005/07/11/sections/breaking_news/article_593352.php

Monday, July 11, 2005

Protest driver not charged

The incident occurred at an appearance by the

Minuteman Project's Jim Gilchrist.

By JENNIFER MUIR

The Orange County Register

GARDEN GROVE — No charges will be filed against a

man

accused of running over two protesters outside a

building where the leader of a group that opposes

illegal immigration was being honored, police said

today.

Harold Netkin, 69, of Van Nuys was arrested May 25

after trying to drive his van into the meeting

honoring Jim Gilchrist, the Minuteman Project leader.

The protesters said Netkin ran them over after they

surrounded his van outside the Garden Grove Women’s

Club.

Video footage emerged during the investigation showing

that two protesters might have been hit by a side-view

mirror, Lt. Mike Handfield said. One protester was

shown standing up after apparently being hit, walking

through the crowd with a megaphone and returning to

lay next to the other protester before claiming to

have been run over.

"(Netkin) was not trying to assault anyone," Assistant

District Attorney Jo Marie Escobar said. "He was

trying to save his own vehicle. There was really no

question about it."

Five protesters were arrested after rocks and cans

were thrown.

Three face a felony charge of throwing a full soda can

at police. Kurt Isobe, 19, Hugo Sarmiento, 24, and

Juan Silva, 26, are scheduled to appear at a pretrial

hearing Aug. 22, Deputy District Attorney Kelly Grogan

said.