Orange County prosecutors have dropped an attempted-murder charge in the high-profile criminal case against Tatiana Turner, a Black Lives Matter activist from Long Beach who prosecutors accused of purposely into a crowd of counter-protesters during a violent confrontation at a 2020 Yorba Linda demonstration.
Turner – who says she acted in self-defense after an angry mob surrounded her car during a rally against police brutality and systemic racism – still faces trial on lesser mayhem and assault charges, among other counts, but no longer faces the prospect of a potential life sentence.
The amended charges were introduced during a court hearing on Friday. Turner once again pleaded not guilty, court records show, and her new bail was set at $100,000, down from her previous $1 million bail. After previously facing more than 30 years to life in prison if convicted of all charges, prosecutors say, Turner now faces up to 19 years behind bars.
Prosecutors say that Turner broke a man’s leg and ran over a woman’s head, and they argued she could have avoided hitting the counter-protesters. The attempted-murder charge was tied to the hospitalized woman.
Senior Public Defender Alisha Montoro, who is representing Turner, said, “Both Ms.Turner and I are certainly happy that she is no longer facing a life sentence.”
Montoro said she still plans to file a motion asking that the case be taken away from Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer and his office. Spitzer had Turner removed last spring from a debate for district attorney candidates for purportedly heckling him.
“From the start, the handling of Ms. Turner’s case has been politically and personally motivated by Todd Spitzer,” Montoro said. “Mr. Spitzer’s conflict of interest, as shown by his actions and statements, has made it clear that Ms. Turner cannot receive a fair trial if he is in charge.”
Kimberly Edds, a spokeswoman for the DA’s Office, said in a statement on why the attempted-murder charge was dropped: “New information about the case was brought to light regarding the evidence and (Turner’s) defense.” She did not elaborate.
Edds noted that Turner wasn’t the only person charged in connection to the protest: At least five others on both sides of the protest were also charged, with lesser crimes.
“The conduct engaged in by this defendant and all of the other defendants charged in this case on both sides of the protest was violent and inexcusable,” Edds said. “Every American has the right to exercise free speech and peacefully protest, but when that freedom of expression turns violent we as a society must hold people criminally accountable so that others can continue to exercise their right to free speech without fear of violence.”
By all accounts, the scene was chaotic and violent that day between the opposing protesters.
Turner — the founder of Caravan 4 Justice in Long Beach — and her fellow activists had gathered in a library parking lot. A group of counter-protesters — many wearing pro-Trump clothing and waving American flags — had set up across Imperial Highway, in the parking lot of a Mimi’s Cafe.
According to courtroom testimony and video footage, the counter-protesters crossed Imperial to confront the Black Lives Matter supporters. Deputies in the library parking lot retreated, as another deputy in a helicopter overhead ordered everyone to leave. Instead, screaming and yelling escalated to pushing and shoving.
In the midst of the clash, Turner got into her Nissan Sentra. More than a dozen counter-protesters gathered around the car, according to testimony and video footage.
A witness heard someone say, “Don’t do it,” and “It is not worth it,” followed by tires screeching, a deputy has testified. Turner accelerated, quickly stopped, then accelerated again, video footage shows, running over the man and the woman.
More than a dozen counter-protesters chased Turner out of the parking lot. Turner pulled up next to a deputy parked a short distance away, with at least some of the windows on her car shattered or broken, and said she was in fear for her life.
In a 911 call that was played during a court hearing, Turner could be heard telling a dispatcher that there were people pulling guns on her, threatening to shoot. Deputies have testified that there were no guns visible during the protest, and none of the video footage shown in court has depicted any firearm being brandished.
The man Turner is accused of running over has testified that she looked him in the eye before moving forward, and in a recorded 911 call leading up to the collision she can allegedly be heard saying, “We will ram their ass.” But video footage from the scene also shows at least one person kicking Turner’s car either immediately before the vehicle began to move or at the same time, and a judge has said he “didn’t disagree” that Turner’s vehicle appeared to be surrounded.
During previous court hearings, Montoro has argued that Turner’s car was “under siege” and that she was in fear for her life.
Some of the counter-protesters interviewed by law enforcement at the scene later posted videos on social media in which they bragged about beating up activists at the Yorba Linda protest, including one man affiliated with the extreme-far-right Proud Boys group. The man who Turner is accused of running over had a shirt referencing the Three-Percenters, another extreme-far-right group.
Earlier this year, Orange County Superior Court Judge Scott Steiner found that there was enough evidence for the attempted murder case against Turner to proceed to jury trial. In making his ruling, Steiner noted that Turner’s defense at trial will almost certainly revolve around a self-defense argument and added that such an argument could potentially be bolstered by Turner immediately going to the police for help.
Turner is out of custody on bail pending trial, which hasn’t been scheduled.
Source: Orange County Register
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