A very national anarchist May Day (ii)

On May Day this year, leading BANANA Andrew Yeoman (aka Andrew White) and a sidekick – Karissa Shaw, previously thought to be Parker Wilson – were involved in an altercation with critics. It ended when the BANANAs’ comrades in the SFPD arrested two of the critics and charged them with felonies. In June, the felony charges were reduced to misdemeanors.

Below is a photo of Andrew White/Yeoman shaking hands with Holocaust denialist Paul Fromm.

Felony Charges Reduced to Misdemeanors for Alleged Attackers of White Separatists
Lauren Smiley
SF Weekly
June 7 2010

A Superior Court judge has reduced felony charges to misdemeanors for two protesters accused of beating two members of the white separatist group Bay Area National Anarchists after the May Day immigration reform rally.

Judge Cynthia Ming-Mei Lee dropped charges against Donnell Allen for assault with a deadly weapon for using a battery (as in an Energizer) and robbing a backpack from Bay Area National Anarchist leader Andrew White (aka Andrew Yeoman). Allen’s assault charge against White was reduced to a misdemeanor.

At the conclusion of the preliminary hearing on Thursday, Lee also reduced the four assault charges against 19-year-old Kelsey Musgrove to misdemeanors — two counts for allegedly assaulting White including macing him in the face, and two counts for alleged assault against BANA member Karissa Shaw. The judge also discharged the second-degree robbery charge against Musgrove for allegedly filching the backpack.

“So it was a good day for Kelsey and Donnell,” wrote Musgrove’s attorney, John Hamasaki, in an e-mail. “I think the judge’s ruling was appropriate after hearing the evidence as it came in. This was a fight, and misdemeanor conduct at worst.”

Hamasaki had attempted to grill White on the fact he lists “kicking ass” as one of his favorite activities on Facebook as well as posting he was attacked by “armed thugs” on white nationalist website Stormfront under the screen name Kyren. Hamasaki explained to the judge he was trying to show White was at the rally to “foment discord.” But Lee largely rebuffed his efforts: “People can believe a lot of things, but whether they act on it” is a different matter, she said. Musgrove was filmed in a video produced by the Golden Gate Minutemen of the May Day rally arguably “fomenting discord” as well, yelling “Come over here, motherfuckers!” at the counter-protesters while still at the rally.

White had no comment on the reduced charges. The two defendants will next be in court on June 17 for arraignment on the misdemeanor charges and to set a trial date.