California Judge Gives OK to Assault Jews

[Bad_Daddy 2,209]

http://news.yahoo.com/ca-judge-deems-ramming-jewish-woman-shopping-cart-003506015.html

California Judge Deems Ramming Jewish Woman with Shopping Cart ‘Free Speech’

The Blaze – 8 hrs ago

Back in June of 2010 a leader of a pro-Palestinian student group at University of Berkeley allegedly rammed a Jewish woman with a shopping cart as she staged a counter-protest to an anti-Israel “Apartheid Week” rally conducted by the Muslim Student Association and Students for Justice in Palestine. The counter-protest was dubbed “Israel Wants Peace Week.”

Now, U.S. District Court Judge Richard Seeborg has deemed that the Muslim students who harassed Jessica Felber and other Jewish students were simply engaging in protected political speech.

The Greeley Gazette reports:

On Thursday U.S. District Judge Richard Seeborg said the harassment, even if true, constituted protected political speech and dismissed the case against the university.

Seeborg said the university did not have any obligation to intervene in any dispute where a private individual on campus was allegedly interfering with another’s constitutional rights. He instead appeared to indicate that the incident was an outcome of Felber’s counter protest.

Felber and another Jewish student claimed the University did not do enough to prevent the harassment which included the Muslim group conducting checkpoints around the campus. Students were asked if they were Jewish while passing the checkpoints.

“The incident in which Felber was assaulted with a shopping cart, for example, did not occur in the context of her educational pursuit,” Seeborg stated. “Rather, that event occurred when she, as one person attempting to exercise free speech rights in a public forum, was allegedly attacked by another person who likewise was participating in a public protest in a public forum.”

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Seeborg said that much of the conduct involved “pure political speech” that is constitutionally protected even if it “contained language that plaintiffs believe was inflammatory, offensive or untrue.”

Seeborg said some courts have allowed public colleges to outlaw harassing speech and conduct that interferes with students’ rights, but schools have no legal duty to do so. The Muslim organizations receive campus funding on the same basis as other groups, the judge said, and any attempt to withdraw it would raise “serious First Amendment issues.”

The Huffington Post adds:

The suit also alleged this attack was part of a pattern of behavior during Apartheid Week, during which Jewish students were spit on and Israel’s government was equated to that of Nazi Germany.

While the university has previously disciplined some of the event’s participants and even had Husam Zakharia, the student who hit Felber with the shopping cart, arrested in connection with the incident, Felber (who graduated last year) has accused university President Mark Yudof, who is Jewish, of allowing an anti-Semitic environment to flourish on campus.

“SJP and Zakharia have been involved in other incidents on campus to incite violence against and intimidate Jewish and other students,” stated the lawsuit. “Defendants knew of this history of incitement and intimidation yet took no reasonable step to adequately control Zakharia or other student members of the SPJ.”

Jihad Watch founder Robert Spencer said the judge’s decision affirms that Muslims assaulting Jewish students is now protected speech.

“This is an outrageous decision. The Muslim students were trying to silence the freedom of speech of the Jewish students. The judge says this is a ruling in favor of free speech, but actually the freedom of speech was being infringed and the judge is saying that is ok to protect the freedom of speech of the Muslim students. Don’t the Jewish students have freedom of speech as well?”

Edited January 4, 2012 by Why_Me

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

The Blaze, eh ? Glenn Beck's site.

Any article that quotes the Head Islamophobe from Jihad Watch as a credible source is automatically relegated to the WorldNutDaily rubbish bin.

[Ban Hammer 13,765]

so she wasn't rammed with a shopping cart?

[^_^ 5,021]

Felber, who graduated last year, and current undergraduate Brian Maissy sued in March to demand the university enact rules to curb what they called ongoing harassment that they said amounted to a violation of their First Amendment rights to freedom of religion and speech.

Much of the alleged harassment, even if true, constituted protected political speech, San Francisco U.S. District Judge Richard Seeborg wrote in dismissing the case against the university Thursday.

Seeborg found that the university itself did not violate the plaintiffs’ constitutional rights. Furthermore, he said UC Berkeley did not have a legal obligation to intervene in any dispute in which a private individual was allegedly interfering with those rights.

“The incident in which Felber was assaulted with a shopping cart, for example, did not occur in the context of her educational pursuits,” Seeborg wrote.

“Rather, that event occurred when she, as one person attempting to exercise free speech rights in a public forum was allegedly attacked by another person who likewise was participating in a public protest in a public forum.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/higher-education/judge-dismisses-suit-alleging-uc-berkeley-pro-palestinian-protesters-fostered-anti-semitism/2011/12/27/gIQAa9gvKP_story.html

[slim 1,533]

If those kids would've been at work none of this would've happened.

[Bad_Daddy 2,209]

This judge was born in Germany...I wonder.....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_G._Seeborg

Richard G. Seeborg

Born in Landstuhl, Germany, Seeborg earned an A.B. in history summa cum laude from Yale University in May 1978 and then earned a law degree from Columbia Law School in 1981.

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

This story has been blowing up all over a certain segment of the blogosphere.

Things to note:

#1. Felber indeed made the shopping cart claim in the course of her lawsuit, but was unable to prove her claim in court and so the judge threw out the case.

#2. Felber's lawsuit was actually against Berkeley, not the person she alleged rammed her with the cart.

Felber accused Berkeley of fostering an atmosphere of anti-Semitism after an incident during a pro-Palestinian protest that included mock checkpoints. She and her pro-Israeli group confronted the protesters, started a heated altercation, and then she got mad that Berkeley wouldn't take her side. She claimed she was harrassed and claimed she was rammed with a shopping cart, but did not provide sufficient evidence to prove her case in court.

So despite the inflammatory headlines going around, the judge didn't say "it's ok to assault Jews;" he said "I can't rule in your favor because you haven't proved your case."

She could always appeal...

[bigdog 377]

Welcome to a State which is going broke to support everyone, born and raised in CA, AZ here we come.

[bigdog 377]

This judge was born in Germany...I wonder.....

http://en.wikipedia....hard_G._Seeborg

Goes to show, you need a gun, oh you have one.

[ready4ONE 5,400]

so she wasn't rammed with a shopping cart?

The assailant was arrested for the assault, so yes even the OP indicated an assault occurred and was dealt with as such.

I don't believe the OP indicates the conclusion of the thread title.

[Bad_Daddy 2,209]

This story has been blowing up all over a certain segment of the blogosphere.

Things to note:

#1. Felber indeed made the shopping cart claim in the course of her lawsuit, but was unable to prove her claim in court and so the judge threw out the case.

#2. Felber's lawsuit was actually against Berkeley, not the person she alleged rammed her with the cart.

Felber accused Berkeley of fostering an atmosphere of anti-Semitism after an incident during a pro-Palestinian protest that included mock checkpoints. She and her pro-Israeli group confronted the protesters, started a heated altercation, and then she got mad that Berkeley wouldn't take her side. She claimed she was harrassed and claimed she was rammed with a shopping cart, but did not provide sufficient evidence to prove her case in court.

So despite the inflammatory headlines going around, the judge didn't say "it's ok to assault Jews;" he said "I can't rule in your favor because you haven't proved your case."

She could always appeal...

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/anti-semitism-claims-uc-berkeley-dismissed-15241338#.TwRrK9QgOgw

In the Apartheid Week protests as described in the lawsuit, students dressed as soldiers carry fake assault weapons and demand to know whether passing students are Jewish. Felber said she required medical attention as a result of the shopping cart incident and obtained a permanent restraining order against the alleged assailant.

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/anti-semitism-claims-uc-berkeley-dismissed-15241338#.TwRrK9QgOgw

In the Apartheid Week protests as described in the lawsuit, students dressed as soldiers carry fake assault weapons and demand to know whether passing students are Jewish. Felber said she required medical attention as a result of the shopping cart incident and obtained a permanent restraining order against the alleged assailant.

Yep. That's what she claims.

That's the great thing about this country. Anyone can file a lawsuit and make any claim they want.

Whether the court will agree is another matter.

[Sofiyya 1,687]

No story here. Yawn.

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

No story here. Yawn.

There have been a number of attempts of late to stifle pro-Palestinian demonstrations, speakers and cultural events at Berkeley, and in the Bay area in general (remember the Gaza children's art exhibit ?)