This is just incredible:
NEW YORK (AP) _ A 23-year-old man was arrested Friday on hate-crime charges after he threw a Quran in a toilet at Pace University on two separate occasions, police said.
Stanislav Shmulevich of Brooklyn was arrested on charges of criminal mischief and aggravated harassment, both hate crimes, police said. It was unclear if he was a student at the school. A message left at the Shmulevich home was not immediately returned.
The Islamic holy book was found in a toilet at Pace’s lower Manhattan campus by a teacher on Oct. 13. A student discovered another book in a toilet on Nov. 21, police said.
Muslim activists had called on Pace University to crack down on hate crimes after the incidents. As a result, the university said it would offer sensitivity training to its students.
The school was accused by Muslim students of not taking the incident seriously enough at first. Pace classified the first desecration of the holy book as an act of vandalism, but university officials later reversed themselves and referred the incident to the New York Police Department’s hate crimes unit.
So someone can burn our nations flag and it’s not a hate crime. It’s a form of expression. That same person could throw a bible into a toilet and he would not be criminally charged. But throw a koran into the toilet and your arrested for a FELONY:
First, Shmulevich was arrested and jailed for 24 hours. Second, he’s not facing misdemeanor charges—he’s being charged with two felonies, criminal mischief and aggravated harassment.
Felonies. For putting a book in a toilet.
Third, his income is on a borderline that disqualifies him for a public defender, so he stands to suffer incredible financial hardship as well.
Fourth, his name and photograph were published in several newspapers in New York, and he and his mother were ambushed outside the court by reporters. In a case like this, clearly with the potential to enrage radical Muslims, this is so irresponsible of the media that it borders on criminal.
CAIR is estatic and is quite possibly one of the main reasons why charges were brought forth in the first place. Meanwhile this 23 year old is looking at prison time for expressing himself, he’s looking at financial ruin defending himself, and he’s looking at some serious violence coming his way from the fanatical Muslims amongst us.
But hey, burn our flag and he would have been patted on the back. Put a cross in urine, get more pats and even some money for your effort. How in the world can they justify felony charges against this man?
Please leave a comment with the university here. We need to make a stink about this. While I disagree mightedly with those who burn our flag I recognize this as a form of free speech, as this act is. Charles at LGF set Mr. Shmulevich up with an account and he is asking for some legal advice. If your a lawyer please visit there and see if you can help.
Oh, btw….where is the ACLU?
See author page
Buy a Koran. Put it in the comode one page at a time after you wipe with it.
The ACLU’s too busy excusing the use of taxpayer funds and public school facilities for Muslim Prayer at Carver Elementary School in San Diego.
Longtime reader, first-time commenter. Love your blog, guys – keep it up! I’ve been in academia for a while and I can’t stand the liberal groupthink permeating Western universities nowadays. At the risk of sounding arrogant, academia is the root of the malignant leftism – what better way to win the information war, after all, than simply depriving the opposing view of facts that contradict a given mantra in an environment sectioned off from the real world. That way, the public, trusting intellectuals to do their jobs honestly, won’t question it. It’s utterly disgusting but thankfully with blogs like yours the end of it may be in motion.
Just a minor technical snark, if you don’t mind: I notice your link to Pace University’s contact info is a general info e-mail address. During the course of events I’ve tried to go through similar university general info channels, asking for mundane stuff, without much luck. Based off this, it could be hard to get through to a person with any complaints. However, there’s probably some specific office at Pace U. that would be more receptive to complaints about this issue. For example, maybe there’s an office that handles affirmative action or interfaith relations that will get even a response.
At the risk of sounding naive, I hope this guy is able to sue CAIR in some way for this outrage.
Set a precedent——have 5000 people show up in a safe invironment, hand them a copy of the Koran (paperback) and have a good ol’ fashioned bonefire. Protesting an ideology is NOT a hate crime.
bonfire not “bonefire” (I don’t want to leave the wrong impression) sorry
You guys have always liked burning books in bonfires.
Since when is stuffing any book in a toilet legal? He wasn’t jailed for 24 hours; he was held pending arraignment.In New York this is normally more than 24 hours.
“random guy in academia” – being a janitor is worthy, where ever you do it, but just because do your work in an academic institution does not make you a guy in “academia” “Based Off This” = ??? The guy should be able to sue CAIR? Come on. .
Nah. He’ll be able to sue the city, but CAIR just complained. There are no grounds for a suit there.
That’s not something we typically arrest people for.
The NYCLU will help if asked by the defendant.
And you guys have always liked burning our flag.
Stuffing a book into a toilet may well constitute vandalism but not two felonies for hate crimes. Your ignorant digs at random guy shows all of us what kind of nimrod you are…..go back to KOS, the mothership is calling you home.
I heard it was placed in an “American Standard” toilet.
Reading the story (from several sources, from right to left), I have to agree that there’s no hate crime here… There’s not much indication that it was even speech… He may just be a garden variety vandal…
Perhaps once the police/lawyers investigate further, they’ll reduce the charges.
Silly rabbit!
They’re standing around Ave Maria village in Florida making sure you can buy condoms and porno at the stores there.
This is pretty funy, considering it was the Anti-Defamation League and the Jewish Lobby that wrote these hate crime “laws” and shoved them down our throats in the first place.
You folks got what you wanted, and now you’re crying when it gets used against one of your own.
Guess you never even dreamed they’d be used against YOU, hunh?
Student nabbed in Koran dunk
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime_file/2007/07/28/2007-07-28_student_nabbed_in_koran_dunk-1.html
II. ADL Approach to Hate Crime Legislation
b – Text of ADL Model Legislation
http://www.adl.org/99hatecrime/text_legis.asp
You people wanted this garbage, and now you’ve got it.
Enjoy