Seven counter-protesters have been charged with attacking members of the Ku Klux Klan during a White Lives Matter rally that turned into a bloody melee in Anaheim earlier this year, prosecutors said Thursday.
The demonstrators were all charged with misdemeanor assault or battery, according to a statement issued by the Orange County district attorney’s office.
“This case is not about who was holding the protest rally, their racist message, or who was counter-protesting. This is about the mob mentality turning violent, which shut down neighboring streets, access to the park, and endangered the community as a whole,” Orange County Dist. Atty. Tony Rackauckas said in a statement. “Our office does not condone any message of hate, mob violence, or vigilante justice.”
News that a small group of Klan members planned to hold a rally in Pearson Park drew a large crowd of counter-protesters to the scene on Feb. 28. More than 50 demonstrators arrived at the park around 10 a.m. and spent two hours speaking out against racism, police brutality and other issues during what started as a peaceful event.
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