New charges filed against BLM-linked activist for using a stun gun on Trump supporters
Tatiana Rita Turner, a 40-year-old social justice activist, faces 13 felonies for violent crimes she allegedly committed during two protests in California. During one of the intense protests, Turner reportedly plowed into a crowd of Trump supporters, and at another rally, she purportedly beat two men with a rod.
There were dueling rallies in Yorba Linda, California, between Black Lives Matter supporters and a pro-Trump crowd on Sept. 26. Turner allegedly drove her car into a crowd of Trump supporters, seriously injuring two people.
KTLA reported Turner was arrested and charged with a felony count of attempted murder with premeditation and deliberation, six felony counts of assault with a deadly weapon, including one causing great bodily injury; one felony count of mayhem; and two felony counts of the use of pepper spray by a felon.
(Content Warning: The following videos contain graphic content):
WATCH: A car ripped through a crowd of Trump supporters at a BLM counterprotest in Yorba Linda. It was clearly deli… https://t.co/rhQM4ksYcT— Ian Miles Cheong (@Ian Miles Cheong)1601168912.0
"Prosecutors charged Turner with attempted murder, alleging she drove over a counter-protester's head," the Los Angeles Timesreported. "The victim, identified Wednesday as 44-year-old Danielle Lindgren, was hospitalized for several months for injuries she suffered during the incident, prosecutors said."
A second Trump supporter reportedly suffered a broken leg after he was run over.
Following a monthslong investigation, Turner was charged this week with a felony count of using a stun gun on a supporter of former President Donald Trump during the Yorba Linda protest, the Orange County district attorney's office stated.
On Wednesday, prosecutors announced additional felony charges against Turner for another alleged attack in August. During a protest against police brutality in Seal Beach, Turner purportedly beat two men with a 4-foot rod. The men had allegedly already been attacked by other protesters and were lying on the ground when they were beaten with the rod.
One of the victims suffered severe injuries to his head and required staples, according to the DA's office.
Turner was charged with two felony counts of assault with a deadly weapon, including one causing great bodily injury, in connection with the Seal Beach attack.
Turner is a social justice activist with ties to Black Lives Matter. Turner was involved with the Urban Organizers Coalition and the Caravan for Justice, a BLM-inspired social justice group that is "dedicated to the next level of progression in our fight for equality and justice" and calls for the "boycott businesses and foundations that support and fund corrupt police departments," according to the group's Facebook page.
"Federal records show that Turner filed a trademark application for Caravan4Justice in July," the Daily Mail reported in September. Turner was named as a "beneficiary" for a GoFundMe campaign titled, "Fundraising for Caravan4Justice," that was launched in July.
Turner was allegedly participating in the "March 4 Equality," a protest against police brutality and systemic racism in Yorba Linda.
If convicted on all counts, Turner faces a maximum sentence of seven years to life, plus 26 years in state prison.
She has pleaded not guilty to all charges. Turner claims that she saw people with guns and feared for her life when Trump supporters blocked her car, her attorney Ludlow Creary II said.
"She wasn't trying to hit anybody," Creary II said. "She wasn't trying to hurt anybody."
Orange County Sheriff's Department spokesperson Carrie Braun disagreed.
"It did not appear from the video we've been able to see that there was a direct threat," Braun said.
Turner has previous felony convictions for drug offenses and domestic violence.
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