Arrest Made in Case of Brutal Berkeley Attack on Conservative Activist
Police arrested a 28-year-old man in connection with the Feb. 19 attack on a conservative recruiter at the University of California at Berkeley.
Zachary Greenberg was arrested Friday by university police after a judge issued a warrant for his arrest, Fox News reported. The arrest came a week after officials had closed the investigation, which they reopened Friday.
UC-Berkeley spokeswoman Diana Harvey said Greenberg worked for the college from May 21 to July 9, 2010 as a Department of Psychology lab assistant, according to Campus Reform. He was also “briefly” a non-degree seeking student at the school, Harvey said.
Greenberg faces charges of assault with a deadly weapon and attempting to cause great bodily injury.
THROW THE BOOK AT HIM. https://t.co/7BJUPOkYPR
— Sebastian Gorka DrG (@SebGorka) March 2, 2019
The attack on 26-year-old Hayden Williams, which was recorded on cell phone videos, took place Feb. 19 while Williams, a field representative for The Leadership Institute, was recruiting for the conservative college group Turning Point USA.
Williams was standing next to a table with a sign that read, “Hate Crimes Hoaxes Hurt Real Victims,” in reference to the Jussie Smollett case, KPIX reported. Williams said he was approached by two men who were angered over the signs.
Williams, 26, was punched in the face repeatedly by one of the men, whom the police later identified as Greenberg, The San Francisco Chronicle reported.
“While every America should be afforded their due process, we believe that the video evidence in this case is incontrovertible,” Charlie Kirk, founder and President of Turning Point USA, said in a statement.
“We hope 28-year-old Zachary Greenberg is prosecuted to the full extent of the law for assault with a deadly weapon, which should be considered an act of hate. Hopefully, this dark chapter will act as a wake up call to those concerned about actual politically motivated hate crimes in America,” he said. “Berkeley and all college campuses across American should be safe havens for free thought and opinions – especially for a targeted conservative minority.”
The delayed response from Berkeley concerning the attack was blasted on social media as indicative of the attitude of colleges toward conservatives.
Wonder if it would be the same if a conservative beat up a leftist on the Berkeley Campus?
Conservatives call out Berkeley police for lack of arrest one week after campus assault on activist. https://t.co/CqKF66vBt1
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) February 26, 2019
College officials have pushed back against claims that the investigation received lower priority because the victim was a conservative.
“Let there be no mistake, we strongly condemn violence and harassment of any sort, for any reason,” Chancellor Carol Christ and Vice Chancellor for student affairs Stephen C. Sutton wrote in a statement, The Washington Post reported.
“That sort of behavior is intolerable and has no place here. Our commitment to freedom of expression and belief is unwavering.”
Greenberg is scheduled to appear in court on Monday. He is currently being held on $30,000 bail.
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