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Brandon Piekarsky, Derrick Donchak, Acquitted in Immigrant Murder
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by Tina Kells | May 1, 2009 at 07:07 pm
3310 views | 22 Recommendations | 17 comments
Accused of a hate crime killing, Brandon Piekarsky and Derrick Donchak of Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, were acquitted late May 1, 2009 on all but one of the charges stemming from the July 2008 beating death of Luis Ramirez, a Mexican illegal immigrant.
Piekarsky and Donchak were acquitted of the three most serious charges; murder, aggravated assault and hate crimes, and were convicted only of simple assault. The jury was sent to deliberation at 3pm on May 1, 2009 and had a verdict before midnight.
Brandon Piekarsky and Derrick Donchak of Shenandoah were cleared tonight by an all-white Schuylkill County jury that found they were not guilty in the beating death of Mexican immigrant Luis Ramirez.
On July 12, 2008 Brandon Piekarsky, Derrick Donchak, Collin Walsh, and Brian Skully attacked Luis Ramirez, beating him as they yelled racial slurs. Ramirez died from his injuries in hospital two days later.
Two Schuylkill County teenagers were charged with homicide Friday morning in the beating of a 25-year-old Mexican national in Shenandoah, a killing that rocked the small town partly because the attackers yelled racial slurs at the victim, officials said.
A third teen was charged with aggravated assault and a fourth teen faces juvenile court charges for his role in the assault on Luis Ramirez, 25, of Shenandoah, said Schuylkill County District Attorney James A. Goodman.
The four males, all from Shenandoah, also were charged with ethnic intimidation because they used racial slurs while ganging up on Ramirez, punching and kicking him even after he was unconscious, according to court papers.
Brandon Piekarski, 16, Collin Walsh, 17, and Derrick Donchak, 18, all were to be tried as adults in the racially motivated hate crime killing of Luis Ramirez, 25. The acquittal of Piekarsky and Donchuck came after a very brief deliberation by an all white jury.
Baldwin told them they can only consider that charge if they find them guilty of one of the other more serious charges: third-degree murder, voluntary or involuntary manslaughter faced by Piekarsky, or aggravated or simple assault faced by both. That's because ethnic intimidation requires that the defendant committed the other crimes with "malicious intention" based on the race, color or ethnic origin of the victim.
Reckless endangerment, which both face, is conduct that places the victim "in danger of serious bodily injury." And corruption of minors, faced only by Donchack, who was 18 at the time of the crime, requires that he influenced Piekarsky or two others who were underage teens at the time, Colin Walsh or Brian Skully.
Closing arguments in the case were offered the morning of May 1, 2009 and the jury had returned the acquittal by the same evening. No details other details of the verdict have yet been released.
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Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (17)
at 05:39 on May 2nd, 2009
If this was a black man who punched a white guy he would go to prison for life .. this is exactly why USA is going down hill
And that bitch - if he did not belong here he would not have died , like fuck off .... all of US belongs to native indians , if fucking immigrants did not migrate to usa , Native indians would be ruling US
at 01:55 on May 3rd, 2009
If a white person looks just a tad wrong at a black person they scream racial discrimination, they protest then riot, then they destroy property, loot buildings and hurt innocent people. We all know why this country is going down hill.
Part of the reason is damn liberals dont take into account all the facts of the story, like the fact that this immigrant who was 25 was all over a 14 yr old girl at a near by highschool when this all happend.
The truth does hurt, when you realize how incompetent you can be.
at 21:52 on May 3rd, 2009
So do you think these teen's should be acquitted? If you do you are part of the problem. It is the people like you. That is the real reason the country is going down hill. I don't care if he is a "immigrant who was 25 and was all over a 14 yr old girl at a near by highschool when this all happend" he was a person that was killed and they just let them walk away. That is the thinking that will destory this country, but it not your fault you are white. Have a fucked up day!
at 05:29 on May 6th, 2009
if darreck, brandon & colin goes to freaken jail its not fair!!!!
its rly not plz i hope they dnt go??
its not fair its just not!!!!!!
at 05:45 on May 6th, 2009
I do not know all the details of this case, however some thing is not right here.
How can they be acquitted of Murder?
at 10:43 on May 19th, 2009
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Hi; is easy to talk but if it was in your family that will be different, if they don't get anything here in this world they will pay on this life I know even if you don’t' believe in GOD
at 14:05 on May 20th, 2009
I'm glad these two young men walked away free. That's as it should be. There's no crime commited when an illegal attacks you and then accidentally dies from their own foolishness. And these young boys were right to defend themselves. As far as I'm concerned, they're heroes. If I were wealthy, I'd pay them a reward!
at 19:15 on May 20th, 2009
So much speculation in these posts. The one indsiputable fact is that the courts has more information regarding the case than any individual poster here and they settled for acquittal. Perhaps you should look further before jumping to conclusions.
at 13:04 on May 21st, 2009
They were Jews. That is the only reason they got off so lightly. This was done to provoke racial animosity between Whites and Hispanics. Do not let the Jews win with these devious tactics.
at 01:09 on May 22nd, 2009
These kids all come from rich JEWISH families
There is no justice in this country, these zio scum group together and conspire against other racial groups.
it's all a circus act, they get acquitted while if this were to happen to a jew they would be in an uproar.
hypocrisy
It's time we start banishing these people from our societies just like the rest of the world has.
at 01:16 on May 22nd, 2009
Sorry I missed this, Tina. Thanks for posting.
at 18:41 on June 11th, 2009
I have tertiary syphilis.
at 14:49 on June 17th, 2009
This is truly a disappointing day for all Americans. How can we teach our children that beating someone is okay as long as a group of members is also doing it? I am truly ashamed today of both the court system and all the young adults involved in this case. I am personally going to write a petition to keep these convicted felons off our streets ASAP and send it to the mass media and to the ACLU as well as other Hispanic Organizations of this tolerance. This can not and should not be tolerated, regardless of ethnicity or immigration status. It is still a human being beaten by 10+ high school jocks.
When people are involved in a crime regardless of their intent, they are accessories to crime, especially if it is murder.
They contributed to the death of Mr. Ramirez and are guilty of murder.
at 07:30 on June 18th, 2009
i agree. This case is sickening! How could this happen? What an injustice to the victim and his family! It just goe sto show, RICH WHITE PEOPLE GET AWAY WITH ANYTHING! as long as you have the money to grease your way out of it!
at 20:57 on June 17th, 2009
Here's the message this sends: as long as your white, it's alright.
It's alright to pick a fight with a spick and kill him. You'll get off with six months. An all white jury. Composed of people like that woman in the video. If HER goddamn ancestors hadn't come here, that man wouldn't be dead. And neither would the Native American tribes. And if we hadn't all worked together Nazi Germany would have won World War II and then collapsed and it'd be a barbaric post-apocalyptic world right now.
I suppose with a black president what can we expect but for the haters to come out in mass. And that's all they are. They've chosen not to be Human beings, chosen for everybody not to be Human beigns, but to be 'us', and for everyone else to be 'them'.
I've seen so much hate. What good does it do? I DEMAND ONE OF YOU TELL ME WHY! TELL ME WHY YOU GO AROUND KILLING! WHY YOU GO AROUND HURTING!
HOW DARE YOU TAKE A LIFE!
HOW DARE YOU!
at 12:49 on June 18th, 2009
Who cares?
The world has more than enough spics anyway.
Good riddance.
at 09:02 on June 24th, 2009
My opinion is that I don't feel sorry for Mr. Ramirez since no longer belongs in this jungle, but do feel really sorry for those of us who live around monters like this cowards. It all stars in their homes, when you meet the parents then understand the children behavior. But I am sure they will not escape God's justice, that's for sure.