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Trump-inspired dirtbag brothers acknowledge beating, urinating on sleeping homeless man
By adamg on Mon, 05/16/2016 - 9:24pm
Two South Boston brothers today admitted they attacked a man sleeping near the JFK/UMass T stop with a metal pole and their urine on their way home from a Sox game last August because he was too Mexican for their tastes.
Scott Leader, 38, was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty in Suffolk Superior Court to causing bodily injury while committing a civil rights violation, assault and battery for purposes of intimidation causing bodily injury, two counts each of assault and battery, and two counts each of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, the Suffollk County District Attorney's office reports.
Steven Leader, 30, got two and a half years on the same charges, the DA's office reports, adding it had asked for 4 to 6 for the older brother and 3 to 5 for the younger.
Before sentencing, an assistant DA read a statement from the victim, 58 at the time:
I still feel pain all over my body from this incident. I don’t think my fingers will ever be the same. I came to this country many years ago and worked hard in the farm fields to provide produce to people here. I actually became a permanent resident of this country years ago, although if I had been undocumented I still would not have deserved to be beaten this way.
According to the DA's office:
The brothers kicked, punched, and urinated on the victim as he slept near the JFK/UMass MBTA station at about 12:30 that morning. One of them took a metal pole and struck the victim with it repeatedly. The two assailants then walked away laughing, witnesses said.
The victim was transported immediately to Boston Medical Center, where he was treated for a broken nose, serious bruising across his torso, and other injuries. With the help of civilian witnesses, State Police identified and apprehended the brothers shortly after the attack.
At the State Police barracks in South Boston, the evidence would have shown, Scott Leader made a series of incriminating statements, including that he and his brother "tuned up" an "illegal immigrant," and that this behavior was acceptable because the victim was homeless and Hispanic.
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Comments
Alternative Headline
"John Henry beer-fueled lunkheads plead guilty to post-Fenway Beatdown"
But of course, blaming Trump is so much easier...
Pshaw
Have you already forgotten why this story went national?
The story went "National"
Because it is good clickbait and fits the Media narrative. And your's as well.
Drunken Fenway louts, not so much.
No, not just drunken Fenway louts
Drunken serial racist goons, well, goon, at any rate, who'd been acting out his issues on people who don't look like him for quite some time - that's why the DA asked for a longer sentence for the senior goon. Then they threw "Trump" on top of that. That they were coming home from a Sox game was only incidental.
So...
He's been acting out against those who don't look like him for a long time, but this one was due to Trump?
According to him
that's exactly correct. Yup.
WHY ISN'T
John Henry and Fenway staffers brought in front of the Boston Licensing board, since these idiots got inebriated in their establishment? Hmmm?
Short Memory
They copped to their inspiration.
A bit of a stretch
“Donald Trump was right, all these illegals need to be deported,” Scott Leader said after the attack, according to authorities.
They didn't say, "we beat that guy because Donald Trump inspired us to do so". They beat the shit out of him, then said Trump said illegals should be deported. Very different than "illegals should be beaten and pissed on".
Do you work for a midwestern
Do you work for a midwestern police union or something? That was some painful torture of reality!
Not out of the question
...that these gentlemen aren't actually familiar with the definition of "deported".
Because,
Unfortunately, Trump speaks for lunkheads like these two guys in question. It's lunkheads such as these two brothers that made the rise of Donald Trump possible.
Products of their fascist environment
Do remember Southie during the busing crisis?
Yes, I remember Southie during the busing crisis, but
first of all, those two brothers were not originally from Southie.
Secondly, the people down in Southie who were acting so atrociously during the busing did not represent or speak for all of the people down in South Boston at the time. Sweeping generalizations also tend to obscure that fact, plus the bigots and extremists don't have to be in the majority to present a problem.
I remember Southie during the busing crisis
And I also remember my grandmother back then, saying "those people in Roxbury..." Although she didn't use the word "people" if you know what I mean.
I think you and her would have had a lot in common.
Yup I remember the busing
Yup I remember the busing crisis. I was very young girl about 6 years old but remember how upset my parents were that instead of going to the school across the street I was going to be bused to another part of Boston. My dad worked 3 jobs and sent me to private school instead. Violence over busing was all over the city not just South Boston. My neighborhood friends who were bused out of Southie were spit on and called names as they emptied the bus. It happened all over Boston but Southie made the most news. I compare busing stories with my wife who grew up in Roxbury and they are very similar and most people were against it but forced into it because of low income. We live in South Boston today and as a community are still trying to heal from the damage that busing did and we don't need others reminding us of how bad and unfair it was. South Boston is a beautiful place to live.
Trump is the most voted
Trump is the most voted candidate in these elections so far. Either you rethink what you just wrote, or you come across as calling a whole nation as being majority-retards and democracy - a broken system.
He's not president yet
A racist demagogue has won the majority vote in a party full of racist demagogues. He's got a bit to go before he takes the oath of office.
A. Trump is not the candidate
A. Trump is not the candidate with the most votes. He is the Republican candidate with the most votes.
B. There is a lot of ignorance in this country.
C. Our democracy is very broken in its current state.
Math, it's easy.
There are 350 million people in our country. Trump has gotten about 10 million votes. So your statement is pointless.
..but yes. Our nation is filled with more simpletons than....yuppies!
- The Original SoBo Yuppie.
Wrong
Trump has 11,025,614 votes currently. His next closest competitor is at 7,392,115.
Hillary has 12,728,414 votes currently. She's fended off 9,627,507 votes for her next closest competitor.
Speaking about majorities, Trump doesn't have a majority. He has a plurality. He's just barely obtained the votes of 40% of the Republican Party. More Republicans have voted for anyone but Trump than have voted for him.
Sounds about right
although I'd put it at way more than half. Likely 75% s Hillary is still getting half of half the nations "votes" too.
Believing more than half the country is borderline retarded is no stretch of the imagination. USA was 50 years behind the rest of the civilized world in removing lead from everything, thus we have at least 2 generations of half wits and they are running the country!
I didn't realize Clinton has
I didn't realize Clinton has actually more votes than Trump, since the latter has won. I happen to think that Trump voters could have spent better their time popping pimples than voting for an unknown quantity. As a matter of fact, their existence validates for me the decision to pass applying for citizenship. However, I am doing my best to hold on to the cognitive dissonance. I refuse to believe I emigrated to a country of idiots, although I've seen this and other signs.
In truth, you all had interesting insights showing you as smarter than the people I usually encounter in Boston, Then again, your education system taught you debating, and you know "all the words". This year I had to work with another immigrant, also a scientist, who was (and is) homeless. If there is anything to complain about, it's not that two idiots kicked this man while yelling crap, but the fact that he was homeless. There is no decency in a city where so much is spent on skating rinks and yet people sleep on the streets. Despite knowing all the words, you collude into this system of housing as an investment and a rent-seeking device. The Devine Golf Course is as spacious as half of Co-op City; the Zoo - almost as much as a third of that. In that space, your grandparents housed 50,000 people, but your generation prefers to house a few pheasants. It's not Donald Trump who decides about housing. It wasn't Trump who found public housing for these two perpetrators, although, keep in mind, I never felt I can afford a 8-dollar beer, the sort that got them drunk. Also, it wasn't Trump who kept Guillermo Rodriguez a homeless. Rodriguez said "I came to this country many years ago and worked hard in the farm fields to provide produce to people here."
It wasn't even Walsh or Menino either. It was the voters who brought Menino and Walsh. They gave them a mandate to keep houses expensive for most, and subsidized for the wrong people, the sort of people who actually have money. Every affordable BS the BRA is offering is beyond the rich of Rodriguez because tens of thousands of Democratic voters like it this way.
I understand advocating for extremely cheap subsidized housing, or even increased taxation, is a big no-no in this country. Well, I sort of understand. First, such a discussion won't sway anyone. Second, you would only build subsidized houses for people who have enough money to buy their own, just as you tax me for free kindergartens that are way beyond the reach of Rodriguez and any proper poor in the city. How about you lot donating money to Rodriguez until you match the donations to Zimmerman?
Republicans hate
public funding of anything, unless it is bombs and destruction on a peoples tens of thousands of miles away. Nearly 30 years of Republican governors in MA basically stripped any hope of restoring mental health services, funding for housing, welfare, etc etc. What we are left with is homeless people who cannot get out of their rut. Shelters turn away drunks so those who like getting sauced or high stay on the street. If you are sober and want a place to sleep, generally that is available to you. Still lots of hoops to jump through. I am not placing blame on this homeless man at all because the odds are stacked against him in terms of getting off the street, and much of that has to do with the fact Americans would rather publicly fund sports stadiums for billionaire owners that fund welfare for the most vulnerable among us.
Sorry to burst your bubble but you indeed emigrated to a land full of morons. I did too. We'll be ok so long as we remember we are adults lliving amongst children.
Thank god we had republican
Thank god we had republican governers in Mass or else we would be so far in debt. It's really not the government's job to take care of people who don't want to work and contribute to society. They don't pay taxes so why do we have to cater to them. In terms of getting off the street, they have to do it- the government doesn't have to help them or anyone for that matter. That only tells them it's okay to live like they are because they will be taken care of with taxpayer money. Is it hard to understand?
Yes - it's called quoting them
The easiest thing ever - repeating stuff they actually said as they were doing it.
Trump statement on Boston attack
Well said, Mr. Trump.
"If you see somebody getting
"If you see somebody getting ready to throw a tomato, knock the crap out of them,".. "Just knock the hell — I promise you, I'll pay the legal fees."-Donald J. Trump
Oh, ha ha ha!
Are you kidding??!? Donald Trump speaks for lunkheads like those two brothers who beat up on the homeless Hispanic guy in the subway station. Not that this kind of gratuitous violence against other racial/ethnic/relligious groups here in the United States hasn't always existed, because it has, but Trump's saying that he'd never condone violence rings rather hollow, because his rhetoric, buffoonery and overall arrogant attitude have helped make already-existing bad situations here in the United States even worse.
What was Trumps first reaction Ofishl?
Trump's original statement about this brutal beating was quite different.
Trump is a very dangerous demagogue and your dishonesty in only quoting his revised statement after he caught some heat is despicable and unfortunatly predictable.
Are we sure it was Trump that said that?
Not his great friend John Miller, or John Barron, or one of his other totally real and not at all made-up friends and spokesmen?
Is that the same Donald J.
Is that the same Donald J. Trump that offered to pay legal fees for his supporters who beat the hell out of people at his rallies? The demagogue who appeals to the lowest common denominator and adds fuel to the fire of society's race to the bottom? Just checking.
Except Trump does condone
Except Trump does condone violence. All the time. He said protesters should be roughed up and that he missed the days when protesters were carried away on stretchers. He considered paying for the legal fees of a guy who sucker punched someone. He spoke glowingly about the story of bullets being dipped in pigs blood before being fired into the heads of Muslims. He paid for a full page newspaper ad calling for the execution of the Central Park 5, a group of innocent black kids. He never apologized for his sick and factually wrong stance on that.
So yes, voting for Trump is voting for someone who has condoned violence for decades.
Telling
Nice headline. I'm no Trump fan but this is simply unfair. Where do they reference Trump in any way as their inspiration for this horrible crime? Only a Clinton loving partisan could make me defend the creep. But, come on. Get a grip.
It is so easy for average college graduates such as us to look down our nose in this liberal haven and demonize anyone who does not worship the (non-Leninist) Marx loving Democrats our little Socialist preserve seem to worship. After all, we don't reside in flyover country. We are coastal elites! But that should not result in thoughtless attack.
You run a good site here Adam. You are better than that. You may not want anyone here who strays from your comfortable local worldview, but you have built an impressive must-read site. I come to you first for local news. That means a lot.
In the end, it is the Creep against the Crook. The Crook will win the Commonwealth's Electors with 70%+ of the vote. Who any of us reading this support matters little. In total we can't change that. But can't we rise above the microaggresssions and discuss things rationally?
No?
Here
Right in the headline, in that noted liberal bubble rag The New York Post
What is this, Short Attention Span Theater?
The Globe, which has the resources to hire actual reporters, recalls:
And let's not forget the Donald's initial response.
Just plain ignorance?
Or willful dishonest ignorance JP resident?
It has been widely reported that the 2 idiots convicted for this crime said they were inspired by Trump. And you know it.
One of the two brothers who beat up the Hispanic man on the MBTA
did admit that they were inspired by Donald Trump. That, however, does not excuse the failure on the part of the two brothers who beat up, seriously injured, and urinated on the Homeless hispanic man in the MBTA subway station to take responsibility for their own actions and behaviors, which were atrocious. Since the two brothers in question were obviously raised up in a household where prejudicial attitudes were instilled in their kids from a very early age, it's mainly a person's familial upbringing that inspires thinking of any kind, be it negative or positive, in a child. That's why I don't totally agree with the idea that the neighborhood in which a person is b brought up in makes a person have certain attitudes.
Socialist preserve?
Lay off the AM radio, JP.
It's melting your brain.
Come on
So if Trump wasn't running, these guys would have just walked by this guy? Maybe handed him a few bucks?
No, probably not
At least the older brother is a racist douche going way back. The fact remains, however, they specifically brought up Trump after they were arrested.
At least the older brother is
This was my thought too. These two just didn't decide one day that they were going to give someone a beating. I would find it hard to believe that this isn't their first assault.
However it was their first assault since Trump's ascendancy which conveniently provided a rationalization rather than a triggering cause.
Frankly I'm surprised that so many people see this as a cause (Trump) and effect (Assault). Unfortunately I'm not so surprised that the national media in it's sensationalist laziness went with the cause and effect story anyway.
Nopers
Read up the page. Keep going.
It wasn't just that these guys attacked a homeless guy and were all racist about it. By itself that would not have warranted national attention; it would have been something of interest only to local media and UHub readers. It was the fact that one of them specifically mentioned Trump in explaining himself to the State Police.
Having read up the page, I'll say this:
While it's possible that the brother who specifically mentioned Trump in explaining himself to the State Police actually was inspired by Trump, it's also possible that the brother in question was also making an excuse in the hopes of avoiding punishment for his wrongdoing.
They might have
We'll never know now.
It's entirely possible that they frequently walk by people they *think* should be beaten for being foreign and poor. When they're drunk, they may even kick at them and threaten them and never get reported. It's not clear how we'd ever learn the truth of what they used to do around poor foreign-born homeless people.
However, Trump has allowed racists to feel more confident in their attitudes. To allow them to voice their racism as if it were practical public policy that's needed to improve the economy and security of our nation. They can walk around knowing that there's a major party candidate that supports their views on Mexicans being evil, Muslims being evil, black people being violent, and the Chinese being evil. The party itself then throws in the bigotry against LGBTQ even while Trump actually distances himself from it but doesn't actively denounce that bigotry.
So, we'll never know if they'd left this guy alone or just barked a bit and moved on or were emboldened by the fact that they've been fed months of "Mexican rapists" and years of "welfare queens" to actually take more action than they otherwise would have.
We live in a world where they have a banner carrier for their racist ideas. Where violence against people other than themselves is condoned. Where someone is feeding them the lie that what they did might have some redeeming value in "making our country great again".
Subway punks not Southie thugs
The sad part of this story is these two mental midgets have a history of beating poor souls to a pulp. If it wasn't for the Donald Trump quote and the quick response of the MSP these thugs would be still preying on the homeless that live on the MBTA.
Count me as surprised that
Count me as surprised that they got as much jail time as they did. They should have run over him with a car.
They should've run him over with a car, eh?
Or, are you just being snarky?
Or, do you think they should've gotten more jail time than they did?
In either case, I'm curious.
Or, he's just phrasing himself poorly
It seems to be a reference to the low jail times typically given to those found guilty of vehicular homicide.
Yes and yes
Yes, I'm being snarky (hard to believe, I know).
And yes, I think they should have gotten more jail time than this, especially if they have a history of doing this sort of thing.
That only works in some cases
You can't just run someone over with a car. You have to keep a spare bike in your trunk to toss out next to them before the cops arrive to see if you're okay.
HIGH-YO!!
HIGH-YO!!
Victim Statement
Thank you for posting the victim statement. It seems that 95% of the time media reports "non-life threatening" injuries and leaves it at that, which tells us nothing about the serious and often ongoing damage suffered.
I have nothing but contempt...
...for these bigots and their despicable role model. But if we can hold Trump at least partly accountable for their attititudes and actions, Sanders should share some blame for the thugs among his supporters who shouted down Barbara Boxer, threw chairs, and shut down the Nevada Democratic Convention last weekend. Trump and Sanders are both fanning the flames of hatred for their own benefit, with precious little thought about the consequences.
Sounds good to me
The Bernie Bros seem to be doing their level best to fuck up what should be the safest Democratic election since 1964.
Balance Fallacy
http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Balance_fallacy
No, just because you want to equate incitement of aggression through dog whistles, naked pandering to racists, and offering to pay for legal aid if people assault protestors with the independent actions of Nevada Bernie supporters doesn't mean they suddenly become equivalent due to some fantasized "well, they're both political supporters" logical loophole your brain thinks exists.
This is your hero's offical response to the Nevada debacle.
Irresponsible, childish, pathetic, and sadly indicative of how low this formerly respectable man has sunk.
https://berniesanders.com/press-release/statement-nevada/