Two young men accused of vandalizing a Black Lives Matter mural in Santa Cruz are facing felony vandalism and reckless driving with the added enhancement of a hate crime charges, according to reporting by the Santa Cruz Sentinel.
On Wednesday, Judge Syda Cogliati ruled on the charges for 20-year-old Brandon Bochat from Santa Cruz and 19-year-old Hagan Warner from Boulder Creek. Their arraignment is set for Jan. 5.
The two allegedly vandalized a Black Lives Matter mural on July 23 on Center Street in Santa Cruz. The mural was defaced with tire burn marks, also known as "burning out," according to a Santa Cruz Police Department press release. The two men were arrested the next day in part due to video evidence of the crime.
Both were booked into Santa Cruz County Jail on felony vandalism and conspiracy to commit a felony charges.
The mural was extensively damaged during the incident. It's likely that the cost of fixing it will add up to $115,000, according to the Santa Cruz Equity Collaboration Founder Sean McGowen as reported by the paper.
While the two men defaced the mural, their defense so far has argued against the act being racially motivated, the paper reported, and instead was focused on the political aspect of BLM.
"BLM is not a protected group, it is a political organization. It is a very of the moment, very important and very popular movement right now," said Bochat’s attorney, Micha Rinkus, according to the paper. "If this act was done towards animus of a racial group, that is one thing. The act was political."
Their attorneys also argued that the vandalism was merely an act of "stupidity and alcohol-fueled," as reported by the paper.
But social media evidence points to the contrary, as revealed by the prosecution, with videos showing the two suspects saying racially charged comments on the night in question and on a separate occasion.
"To say this is them being boys doing something stupid truly minimizes what happened," said Santa Cruz County Prosecutor Michael Mahan, as reported by the paper. "There are other ways to make a political statement."
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