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Two members of the right – wing Proud Boys group were sentenced Monday for fighting with members of the left antifa in Manhattan last year.
A jury found John Kinsman and Maxwell Hare guilty of attempting to assault a gang, attempting aggression and demonstrating riots arising from the confrontation near the Metropolitan Republican Club following the speech of the 39, former Proud Boys leader, Gavin McInnes, in October 2018.
Both men face up to 15 years in prison and will remain at liberty until sentencing.
The Attorney General of Manhattan, Cyrus Vance Jr., hailed this condemnation as a blow to the rise of extremism and "violence by the mob".
"Faced with the rise of extremism in America, a Manhattan jury said with one voice that New Yorkers would not tolerate crowd violence in our backyard," he said. said in a statement.
Before the 2018 skirmish, some 60 protesters, including members of the antifa, gathered behind barricades to taunt McInnes' speech.
To avoid a confrontation, the police asked the Proud Boys to head west on 83rd Street, then south on Park Avenue, while guiding their opponents in the opposite direction.
When the Proud Boys approached 82nd Street East, they saw six alleged antifa protesters walking towards them and a fight broke out.
Attorney Joshua Steinglass argued at trial that the Proud Boys had clearly initiated the fight.
Kinsman and Hare testified that they felt threatened and acted in self-defense.
A total of 10 Proud Boys were charged as part of this incident. Seven of them have plea agreements and one has not been tried.
The victims of the case were never identified and Antifa refused to cooperate with the investigation.
"These accused turned a quiet residential street into a royal battle site, striking and striking four people in an act of brutal political violence," Vance said.
Kinsman and Hare declined to comment when they left the courthouse.
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