WI. Hmong Hunter Killing: Retaliation?

By Jeralyn, Section Crime in the News
Posted on Tue Feb 06, 2007 at 02:35:33 PM EST
Tags: Hmong (all tags)

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Remember Chai Vang, the Hmong hunter convicted of killing six white hunters in Wisconsin a few years ago?

It appears there may have been a revenge killing. A White hunter, James Allen Nichols, is accused of killing a Hmong hunter, Cha Vang, earlier this month. (yes, the names are that similar.) Was it an accidental shooting? Consider this:

There was no need to shoot Vang, stab him six times and then shove a 3- to 4-inch stick down his throat, what Allen has been accused of doing. Maybe, in the heat of the moment, it became a crime of hatred.

The Hmong community is seeking justice.

Once again, we have a tragic clash between a Hmong person, a white person and hunting. Yet some still refuse to believe this killing stems from anything racist. Some refuse to believe racist ideas and prejudice exists in today's advanced society. But segregation is not buried that deeply in the past.

....Even when I felt compassion for Chai Soua Vang, I also felt compassion for his victims and their families. There was no justifying what he did. Because the Hmong community condemned his actions and gave those white hunters and their families justice, we now expect the same in return.

The jury didn't accept Chai Vang's cultural defense. What defense will Mr. Nichols' have?

< Libby's Theory of Defense | Obama to Quit Smoking as He Enters Race >

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WI. Hmong Hunter Killing: Retaliation? | 4 comments (4 topical)

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Nichols (none / 0) (#1)
by sarcastic unnamed one on Tue Feb 06, 2007 at 03:38:45 PM EST

admits to killing Vang.

Since Vang was shot once, apparently, by Nichol's shotgun, and was stabbed 6x by Nichol's knife in the neck, and had a stick shoved down his throat when he was found by the police buried in a make-shift grave under a pile of leaves and wood, I think it's pretty clear Nichol's claim of self-defense is questionable.

hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm (none / 0) (#2)
by cpinva on Tue Feb 06, 2007 at 04:28:20 PM EST

does "stupid" constitute a valid defense? obviously, self-defense is going to be a heavy burden to lift, given the knife wounds, stick in the throat and burial in a shallow grave. a knife is an up-close and personal weapon, difficult to use effectively, when running in the opposite direction. so yeah, i think that's definitely a tough sell to a jury.

was it a hate crime, or retaliation for the other six murders? beats me, neither you or the linked article provide any information that would tend to support that assertion.

did mr. nichols have a history of animosity towards the hmong population? i don't know, it isn't stated anywhere. did he know any of the previous victims? again, i haven't a clue, it isn't noted. had he had prior alteractions with other hmong in the area? i couldn't tell you. again, it's not stated anywhere.

absent any particularly revealing information, about mr. nichols and his feelings towards the hmong in general, and the victim specifically, this appears, on the surface, to be just another stupid crime. it should be treated accordingly.

name (none / 0) (#3)
by Gisleson on Tue Feb 06, 2007 at 05:23:44 PM EST

Cha Vang is about as close to "John Smith" as you can get with Hmong names. There are only about twenty clan names, and Vang is the most common. The two Vangs are not in anyway related, except by clan name.

Wonder (none / 0) (#4)
by Abdul Abulbul Amir on Wed Feb 07, 2007 at 10:55:33 AM EST

It makes you wonder how a guy can be so stupid and still tie his shoe laces.