A man accused of feeding the fire that destroyed a Salt Lake City police car during protests over George Floyd’s death said Tuesday that he was actually trying to extinguish the flames.
La’Troi Newbins, 28, of Salt Lake City, said during a court teleconference hearing Tuesday that he only had peaceful intentions when he joined protesters on May 30.
“I woke up that morning, and I felt like I had to go,” Newbins said. “It was for a cause, and it was for justice.”
Newbins has been charged with one count of arson. If convicted, he faces 5-to-20 years in prison, as well as a $250,000 fine.
Prosecutors said Newbins can be seen on video putting what appeared to be a rolled-up banner on the fire to act as kindling. But attorney Darwin Overson said his client had soaked the material in water and used it in an unsuccessful attempt to stamp out the flames.
[Read More: Hundreds come out in the rain to protest police brutality in Salt Lake City on Saturday]
Newbins said he had already put out a previous fire in the patrol car using a water bottle, but he was too late to stop the second one.
Overson said there was “good reason” to believe his client was trying to prevent arson. He said Newbins acted as a leader in the protests a couple days later on June 1 and helped negotiate a peaceful exit for protesters without mass arrests.
Magistrate Judge Dustin B. Pead ruled that Newbins would be released from custody on Thursday with conditions, including home detention and mandatory drug treatment. Newbins says he uses marijuana to treat a back problem. He must also undergo a mental health evaluation.
Pead said he did not feel comfortable sending Newbins home to his wife and children because of a prior domestic violence charge in 2017 and asked that Newbins find somewhere else to stay. He also has a misdemeanor court history from 2011 and 2012.
He is one of six people accused of helping destroy the car. Three additional people were charged Monday in connection with overturning the patrol car that was then set on fire.
Rhys Clementine Wisner, of Midvale; Julie Mariam Yasima, of Murray; and Ian Eric Nightingale, of South Jordan, have each been charged with with criminal mischief and rioting.
Wisner, 21, and Nightingale, 18, are accused of helping flip the car onto its roof. Nightingale was also seen using a skateboard to smash the vehicle’s back window after it was flipped over, police said.
Yasima, 26, pointed herself out in a video that showed her and other members of the crowd pushing the patrol car over, according to court documents.
Officers identified Wisner and Nightingale by comparing their driver’s license photos to video footage of people damaging the car. Yasima later acknowledged she helped damage the car, according to court documents.
No attorney was listed in court records who could comment on behalf of Wisner, Yasima or Nightingale.
Prosecutors last week also charged Connor Peebles, 21, of Belmont, Michigan, with felony counts of criminal mischief and rioting.
Another protester Jackson Stuart Tamowski Patton, 26, was also charged with arson. His detention hearing is scheduled for Thursday.
Sophia Eppolito is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
from The Salt Lake Tribune https://www.sltrib.com/news/2020/06/09/man-denies-fanning-flames/
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