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.

The OC Register is getting lazy, again. You'd think with such a large building, they could afford to talk to more people before they write a story.

The fourth estate is supposed to keep an eye on people with power, but it looks like the OCR is more interested in protecting the people with power. It reminds me of... oh... maybe the San Gabriel Valley Tribune and their biased coverage of the Baldwin Park events.

Are we in a journalistic wasteland or what?

My injury was almost exactly like this ^



I was struck by a car so hard I went completely over the top

and ended up on the ground behind it, with my bike totalled

I didn't think I was injured much at first so I got up and walked away

Within an hour due to a severe bone bruise I could no longer walk and ended

up in the emergency room hopping on the other leg..



> 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?



We were in Florida, the driver of the car had Alaska tags, and even

though there were witnesses who saw me go over the car, and my

bike ruined (frame bent) *they refused to do anything* other

than take a report. When I later contacted them about the driver

*they refused to provide me with any information to track him down

for an insurance claim*

They were useless

I didn't even call them - some bystander did when they saw me flying

over the car.



> 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."

Not "run over" but HIT - as even the videotape showed. I was hit

really hard (as above) and they (after checking the driver's ID)

downplayed it and acted like it was no big deal.

Bystanders were *shocked* and told me I should sue both the driver

and the police for not arresting him.



I was riding across a huge parking lot - I look well ahead at all cars

as I'm riding and stopped this car at a 4-way stop from the time I entered

the lot, it sat there idle the whole time, it took me around 30 seconds

to cross the lot, the car just sat at the stop sign (which I thought was

unusual most cars only stop a second the go) when I got to where it was

at an access road at the edge, right as I went across about 10 feet in

front of it he *peeled away* from a dead stop and struck me !

that's why I went completely over the car - he squealed his tires from

a stop he had been at for an extended period of time

Like he hit me on purpose - as hard as he could

I was watching him though - he was having a heated argument with

his girfriend/wife and he peeled out in anger from arguing with her,

he wasn't watching the road but her as he did it - that's why he hit

me so hard..

I explained this to the cops - witnesses thought he hit me on purpose

but I saw him arguing and not looking - I just couldn't get out of

the way because he came so fast from stomping on the gas..



I got to help from the cops at all and they acted like I wasn't hurt

even though bystanders were shocked I could get up at all and a couple

of elderly people told me I should lay down and wait for the EMS to

arrive because my neck or other bones might be broken

I didn't want to make a fuss and felt ok right then (although my leg

hurt really bad it didn't hurt enough at first to keep me from walking

on it) Over the next hour the pain became so bad I couldn't put any

weight on it and had to hop around on the other one.

A bone bruise is as severe an injury you can have without actually

breaking a bone - any harder and it would have been broken...

But I got up and could walk at first..

Notice that the subheadline in the below article published in the printed version of the Orange County Register reads, "Protesters said they were run over, but video didn't support them." This is the spin that Lt. Mike Handfield of the Garden Grove Police department is putting out.

I'm sure that as a police officer, Lt. Handfied has been involved in enough accidents in his career to know that it's not uncommon for people who have been hit by motor vehicles to say they've been "run over". But he's trying to imply that protesters were faking their injuries.

Also, the article printed in The Register fails to mention that Jim Lafferty, Executive Director of the National Lawyer's Guild, was almost "run over" by Netkin. He had to jump on the hood of the minivan to avoid going underneath the car. I should know because I saw this happen.

It's not surprising to me that the Garden Grove Police department disclosed this information to the Orange County Register first; they knew the coverage would be slanted in their favor. That Lt. Handfield is quoted tells me he's the one orchestrating the spin.

Sincerely,

Duane J. Roberts

duaneroberts92804@yahoo.com



http://www.ocregister.com/ocr/2005/07/12/sections/local/local/article_593491.php

Tuesday, July 12, 2005

Driver not charged in Minuteman confrontation

Protesters said they were run over, but video didn't support them.

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 Monday.

Harold Netkin, 69, was arrested May 25 after driving his van to 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 lie next to the other protester before saying he had 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.

Fuck the DA, you don't need him to press charges in a civil court.

Sue Ned directly, Then you can subpoena the police video.