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‘The videotape shows a violent and unstable student,’ scholar says
As details emerge about an assault on a conservative Jewish activist at the University of Michigan on Sunday, one prominent law professor argues campus leaders should take swift action against the perpetrator.
“Universities will often delay any final action pending a criminal case, but Michigan should immediately suspend this student pending further investigation,” said George Washington University Law Professor Jonathan Turley in an interview Monday.
“The videotape shows a violent and unstable student,” he said via email. “The university must, first and foremost, protect the community. The most obvious charge would be assault and battery.”
The University of Michigan student went viral for shoving conservative Jewish activist Liz Benichou to the ground and yelling “I should have killed you when I had the chance.” The entire exchange was caught on video.
Benichou was there with Liberty Under Fire USA, which did not have a permit from the university for its tabling event asking students “Is Islam Compatible with the West?”
Members of the conservative group are weighing a civil lawsuit against the student.
“We are definitely exploring our options from a civil point of view,” said Joe Redden, who was at the group’s table when the confrontation began.
Police took the student into custody, then processed and released her.
The case “will be forwarded to the Washtenaw County Prosecutor’s Office for review,” Melissa Overton, deputy chief of police and public information officer for the university’s Division of Public Safety and Security, said in a statement. No charges had been announced as of Nov. 2.
Police have not released the student’s name.
“We do not release names until an individual is arraigned,” Overton said.
Sarah Hubbard, a member of the University of Michigan Board of Regents, told The College Fix that the university’s next steps are “laid out in Michigan’s rules and bylaws.”
“I expect we’ll be following that process,” Hubbard said. “Violence is wrong no matter where it happens. But I happen to be on the governing board of the University of Michigan and violence on our campus is especially concerning to me.”
According to the video, the confrontation unfolded in a few minutes.
“She seemed to be joking around at first,” Redden told The Fix. The student moved closer to the table and “kept trying to draw people from the crowd in to support her,” he said.
Police told the group it needed a permit to stay, and members began packing up, he said.
“We weren’t going to fight with the cops about it,” Redden said. “So we were already in the process of tearing down when she got up close and smacked me with the phone.”
The student then turned to Benichou.
The video shows Benichou asking, “Am I wrong? If you walked around like this in Iran, what would happen to her?” The student dropped her phone, shoved Benichou to the ground with both arms, and appeared to kick her, according to the video.
“It just devolved into violence so fast,” Redden said.
A man pulled the student away. She removed her backpack and tried to reach Benichou again before an officer brought her to the ground.
“She fought them pretty aggressively,” Redden said.
As officers walked her to a police vehicle, the student shouted, “I should’ve f—ing killed you when I had the chance,” according to the video.
Benichou reportedly injured her lower back when she was shoved. “Political violence has no place in the United States of America,” Benichou said in a statement posted online.
While some social media posts claimed the student works for Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in Michigan, a campaign spokesperson told MLive the student has no official affiliation with the campaign. El-Sayed faces Republican Mike Rogers on Nov. 3.
Redden said his group heard the student would not be charged. Police have said only that the case is under review.
“If they’re going to continue to not hold these people accountable for what they’re doing, then there’s not going to be any consequences,” Redden said. “Then it’s not going to stop.”
Turley added to The Fix: “The incident also should cause a degree of serious reflection about the culture and environment fostered on these campuses. While this person seems unstable, the radicalized environment and ideological echo chamber in higher education can give such individuals a sense of license in violent actions.”
