White heroes sentenced for white paint

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DETROIT(AP) -- Two men accused of defacing a monument to boxing great Joe Louis with white paint waived their right to a preliminary hearing Thursday.

Judge Mark Randon of the 36th District Court agreed to eliminate the requirement that the suspects, Brett Cashman, 45, and John T. Price, 27, stay on electronic monitoring while they are free on bail.

Cashman and Price will be arraigned in Circuit Court this month. The men spoke only to tell the judge that they agreed to waive their right to the hearing, but their lawyers reiterated after court that the vandalism was not racially motivated.

This was non-violent political protest, said Price's attorney David Rosenberg. "t cer
ainly wasn't meant to evoke in any way thoughts of racism.

Rosenberg and Marc Beginin, Cashman's lawyer, said they are hopeful that a plea agreement can be worked out.

The pair was arrested

Feb
. 23 and char
ged with malicious destruction of property in defacing the 8,000-pound arm and fist.

The monument, put up in 1986, is a tribute to Louis and considered by many a symbol of black power and triumph over injustice. But it is also seen by some as a reminder of Detroit's history of violence, and its ongoing crime problem.

Cashman previously said he and Price, both of Washtenaw County's Superior Township, targeted the fist because of its violent imagery and inappropriateness as a city symbol. Police found photos at the base of the statue of two white police officers recently shot to death during a traffic stop. The man suspected of killing them is black.
If convicted, the men face possible penalties from fines to five years in prison

http://www.detnews.com/2004/metro/0403/18/metro-96216.htm
 
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http://www.detnews.com/2004/metro/0403/25/metro-103451.htm

Suspects plead guilty in defacing of Joe Louis monument


Associated Press

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DETROIT -- Two men accused of defacing a monument to boxing great Joe Louis by covering it with white paint pleaded guilty Thursday to malicious destruction of property.

Brett Cashman, 45, and John T. Price, 27, face up to five years in prison at a sentencing hearing scheduled for May 14.

Wayne County prosecutors, however, recommended that they serve 30 d
ys in jail and the remainder of their sentence on probation, and pay $1,000 in restitution before sentencing, Prosecutor Kym Worthy said in a statement.

The pair was arrested Feb. 23 following
r
the
vandalism of the 8,000-pound sculpture depicting the arm and fis
t of Louis, who grew up in Detroit.

The monument, erected in 1986, is a tribute to Louis and considered by many a symbol of black power and triumph over injustice. ( So the blacks are allowed to have 'Black Power' but Whites can't have 'White Power'? Why this double standard? *rhetorical question* ) But it is also seen by some as a reminder of Detroit's history of violence, and its ongoing crime problems.
 
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2 Sentenced for Defacing Detroit Monument

By Associated Press

May 14, 2004, 10:12 AM EDT


DETROIT -- Two men who threw white paint on the Joe Louis fist, a landmark sculpture commemorating the black boxing great, were sentenced Friday to 30 days in jail.

Brett Cashman, 45, and John T. Price, 27, pleaded guilty last month to malicious destruction of property and were also ordered to pay $1,000 in restitution.

They were credited with 26 days of time served and will serve the four remaining days
n weekends, along with 18 months of probation.

Cashman and Price, who are white, were arrested Feb. 23 for throwing paint on the 8,000-pound sculpture of Louis' arm and fist. They have said they
r
ta
geted the sculpture because of its violent imagery, not as
a racist act.

Louis, who died in 1981, is a hero in Detroit, where his family moved when he was a boy. The Detroit Red Wings hockey team plays in a downtown arena named for him, and the 24-foot fist sculpture has a prominent location along Jefferson Avenue.
 
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http://www.detnews.com/2004/metro/0405/14/metro-153273.htm

Two men sentenced to 30 days in jail for defacing Joe Louis monument in Detroit


By Tarek El-Tablawy / Associated Press

Previous reports


DETROIT -- Two men who threw white paint on the Joe Louis fist, a landmark sculpture commemorating the black boxing great, were sentenced Friday to serve 30 days in jail.

Brett Cashman, 45, and John T. Price, 27, who pleaded guilty on March 25 to malicious destruction of property, a felony, were credited with 26 days of time served.

The men, who will serve the four r
maining days on weekends, also were sentenced to 18 months probation and were ordered to pay $1,000 in restitution.

These guys don't have previous criminal records. I highly doubt that you wil

l b
seeing them in court again, said David Rosenberg, P
rice's Southfield-based attorney.

Cashman and Price, who are white, were arrested Feb. 23 for throwing paint on the 8,000-pound sculpture of Louis' arm and fist. They have said they targeted the sculpture because of its violent imagery, not as a racist act. Both declined comment after the sentencing and said little in court except to answer the judge's questions.

To them, it represents a symbol of violence -- a clenched fist. ... If it's a monument to Joe Louis, where is the boxing glove? said Marc Beginin, Cashman's Birmingham-based attorney.

Louis, who died in 1981, is a hero in Detroit, where his family moved when he was a boy. The Detroit Red Wings hockey team plays in a downtown arena named for him, and the 24-foot fist
sculpture has a prominent location along Jefferson Avenue.
 
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This is totally unjust. I believe these white brothers are being denied money from the National Council of the Arts to fund thier good works.

Personally, I think I deserve funding to display my great art work of a figureene of martin luther coon, jr., in a jar of urine.
 
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