Legal Defense for Koran Hate Crime Arrest

Isn’t America great? Ever since the Koran hate crime story broke the other day on LGF and I picked it up here, it has hit the news like a tornado. Michelle Malkin quoted me and I received an email message from Fox News Channel to appear for an interview on Hannity & Colmes. Alas, returning home as late as I did from work tonight, I missed the opportunity.

LGF has since featured numerous threads on the topic with over 1000 comments on Sunday alone, marshalling an outpouring of concern and support for Stanislav Shmulevich, a former Pace University student who has been arrested for desecrating a Koran. According to Charles Johnson of LGF, Stanislav, whom he has contacted, was charged with two felony counts of criminal mischief and aggravated harassment. He was jailed for 24 hours and released without bail after being arraigned on the felony charges.

Several attorneys have already contacted Johnson and pledged their support as well as offers of financial assistance for legal expenses, which have been pouring in. There were many posted comments on the legal ramifications of hate crime law and speculation on how to fight this legal battle of the century. I stayed up late last night pouring over the comments of LGF readers debating what constitutes a hate crime and the many examples of defiling Christian and Jewish sacred texts and artifacts deemed protected speech while desecrating the Koran is now a felony. One reader posted the following shrewd comment: “The koran itself is filled with hate speech and possessing it should be a hate crime.”

I am no legal scholar, but I believe this should be considered for the upcoming legal defense. The Koran is unique among religious texts in promoting and inciting war against unbelievers. According to Robert Spencer, prominent author of books on Islam, there are over 100 verses in the Koran that exhort believers to wage jihad against non-Muslims. Among the admonitions to murder unbelievers is the notorious Verse of the Sword (9:5): “slay the unbelievers wherever you find them.” If hate crime laws are based upon the intent to do harm or incite violence then an aggressive legal offense should mention this with regard to the Koran. They should play hardball with Muslim activist organizations like CAIR and MSA who bully and threaten people into submission and who now are threatening our liberties with our own laws.

One of the comments on LGF was from Stanislav, who is requesting legal help. Interested lawyers with expertise in these areas of students rights and free speech law should follow the daily LGF posts for updates on the efforts to put together a legal defense team.

Hi all,

Thanks for giving me an account here Charles. My first message is brief as I have a meeting with family coming up and wont be back for a while.

Firstly, thank you everyone for support. At the moment, I'm looking for legal advice for this. Yes, the book in question is school property...so charges of vandalism I would understand and not need advice on. Earlier someone posted that you can burn a US flag and claim freedom of political speech, a Koran is the same, can someone with knowledge of law further comment on this as my current legal defence is Google.

Once again, thanks for understanding.

Stanislav