FINAL TWO DEFENDANTS IN MISSOURI WHITE SUPREMACIST CASE PLEAD GUILTY TO RACIALLY MOTIVATED ASSAULT

WASHINGTON, D.C.- The Justice Department today announced the guilty pleas of two final defendants, both avowed white supremacists, previously indicted for participating in a June 2001 racially motivated assault at a Springfield, Missouri restaurant.

Kenneth Francis Johnsen and Michael Angelo Osorio, both pleaded guilty today to federal civil rights charges for their role in attacking two African-American men at a Denny’s restaurant in June 2001. Johnsen and Osorio, who were charged with the assault in the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri in February 2004, admitted that they and their three associates beat, kicked and stabbed one of the victims.

“The five defendants in this case carried out a brutal attack for no reason other than the race of their victim,” said R. Alexander Acosta, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “An incident like this shocks the conscience of all Americans. As the successful prosecution of this case demonstrates, the Justice Department remains committed to vigorously prosecuting bias-motivated crimes.”

According to their pleas, also filed with the District Court, the defendants admitted participating in the attack on account of the victims’ race and because they were using the Denny’s restaurant. Three co-defendants in the attack have previously pleaded guilty.

Johnsen and Osorio also have agreed to plead guilty to related state charges brought by Greene County Prosecuting Attorney Darrell Moore. The defendant’s federal guilty pleas carry a maximum sentence of ten years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

“Today’s guilty pleas assure a just conclusion to this case,” said U.S. Attorney Todd P. Graves for the Western District of Missouri. “All five of the defendants will now be held accountable for their bias-motivated attack upon two black men. The first successful federal civil rights prosecution in the history of Springfield should send a message loud and clear that we will not tolerate such crimes in our community.”

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Springfield Police Department jointly investigated the matter. The Criminal Section of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and the United States Attorney’s Office jointly prosecuted the case.

Prosecuting the perpetrators of bias-motivated crimes remains a top priority of the Justice Department. Since 2001, the Civil Rights Division has charged 110 defendants in 69 cases of bias-motivated crime.

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