Nasser Hammad addresses a Trumbull County, Ohio, courtroom. Hammad was sentenced to two consecutive life terms and is now in a Supermax prison in the Greater Cleveland area. A growing group of Hammad's supporters want his case to be retried.
“A doctor at the prison sort of said ‘So now you’re going to die in prison,” said Judi Viets, a friend of Tracy Hendrickson, Nasser Hammad’s girlfriend. “I can’t believe how cavalier and arrogant this doctor’s comment was – it’s almost like he’s happy that Nasser has a deadly medical condition.”
The State of Ohio vs. Nasser Hammad’s verdict, two concurrent life sentences, is proof that Arab-Americans are not on the same level as the majority of us. An all-Caucasian jury handed down this verdict after only a little more than an hour of deliberations.
A fairer judge and jury might have taken into consideration that Hammad was a man who was pushed too far. Everybody has a threshold for belligerence, hostility and downright hatred, and Hammad just had enough of the threats (including threats upon his life with large, lethal firearms and big, long knives in social media postings); harassing telephone calls; yells and screams by troublemaking hooligans driving past his home and stalking him at all hours, day and night; and abuse suffered by his significant other, Tracy Hendrickson, whose two own sons and estranged husband were major culprits in this ongoing social media war that turned into a deadly shootout at Hammad’s home in Howland, Ohio, a suburb of Warren.
The local media coverage of the violent and deadly rampage at Hammad’s home, and even the trial, can be called nothing less and nothing more than a lynching party. The media did not handle this case of Hammad protecting his home and his loved one fairly. “We got our Aaa-Rab, he’s the sole bad guy in this lethal fustercluck! hip hip hoorah!” seems to be a good chant for these yellow - journalism charlatans.
One of the morning local morning shows can be seen as more a very poor comedy routine – perhaps even bordering on Vaudeville antics - than an actual news show. These two bad actors – Len Rome and Jim Loboy - are a little hard to take early in the morning, when the majority of their viewers are shaking off slumber while the two TV blowhards are in 5th gear, sometimes even appearing to be all jacked up on something or other — maybe they’re just immature or infantile? It sure looks like they’re having a lot of fun cutting up on each other and the pup reporter minions that follow these two idiots around like lost dogs.
. , I don’t know what these people are smoking, but it sure looks like they’re a happy bunch of fruitcakes! Oh, house fires are so funny! Did any of these knuckleheads even check if someone was trapped inside that house that was flaming like a summer bonfire?! An incorrigible attention seeker, Jim Loboy even had himself buried alive for a good, long time — 29 hours six-feet-under, to be exact - just so he could make the news. Well, it was a charity-seeking stunt for a local food bank, but the creepiness of this stunt would make more modest folks shake their heads — that’s really weird, extreme stuff!
In a struggling and distressed area like the Mahoning Valley, what residents deserve is transparency, accuracy and fairness in the news. All the major media sources claim they do investigative reporting, but actually, much of the news seems to be controlled by the powers-that-be in high political and business circles. For example, one of the most glaring examples of how unfair the media was to Hammad, an Arab-American construction company owner, was by a Cleveland television news outfit, and in a very short brief on their online offering, no mention was made of the outright war Hammad was having with a terrorist troupe that attacked him at his home, only about an hour-and-15-minute drive to the Cleveland city limits.
Right after the New Year, a Jordanian national, Al Adi, owner of the Downtown Convenience and Deli and Circle Hookah and Bar in downtown Youngstown, a sister city to nearby Warren, fell prey to Donald Trump’s deportation and immigration policy and was to be deported back to his native land this Sunday. But U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan of Howland, D-13th, a vocal and tenacious adversary to many of Trump’s policies, announced Thursday afternoon (Jan. 4) that after working with Al Adi’s attorney, David Leopold, and the House judiciary committee, a decision was reached to grant Adi a stay of deportation. He said he was able to stay thanks to the support of the community and the work of Ryan, as well as his lawyer and his family. he said he is "overwhelmed by the support."
U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan (D-13th Ohio) is not a fan of Donald Trump’s deportation policies. Ryan fights for those who fall prey to Trump’s draconian and evil mandates.
“I am pleased to announce that our friend (Al Adi’s) deportation has been postponed. We will continue to fight for Amer to stay in Youngstown – his home. Today is a big day,” said Ryan.
To show the ridiculous nature of Trump’s hostile policies against Middle-Easterners, Al Adi has lived in the U.S.A. for four decades and has no criminal record whatsoever. By all accounts, he is a good citizen and is “living the American Dream” in a city that most of its residents have fled from — Youngstown has lost 2/3’s of its population since its large integrated steel mills closed during the late-1970’s and early-1980’s. In all fairness, the local media did a great job letting the reading and viewing public know that Adi is a well-liked and respected small business owner in this Rust Belt city, which has many derelict buildings and vacant storefronts not only downtown, but throughout the city.
Congressman Ryan also had a lot of concern and stern criticism of Trump’s hateful and unfair treatment of Middle-Eastern people suffering in his Congressional District when more than 100 Chaldean Catholic and Muslim Iraqis were reportedly arrested in Detroit, Mich., on Sunday, June 11, and were sent to Youngstown, Ohio, to be incarcerated in the Northeast Ohio Correctional Center, a federal prison run by CoreCivic Inc., formerly known as Corrections Corporation of America.
"I was deeply troubled when I heard reports of the large number of Iraqi immigrants being imprisoned in Youngstown. It is my understanding that the vast majority of these men and women came to the United States legally long ago, but are being deported due to violating their visa restrictions. And while I understand that immigration law provides for the removal of those who’ve committed crimes, we must provide allowances when a deportee faces the very real threat of persecution and violence upon removal. We are a strong country. And we are strong enough to allow people who, if not allowed here, would have to return to a place that may be hell on earth for them and their families," Congressman Ryan told this writer last summer.
Nobody knows how many of these prisoners are being, or were being held in Northeast Ohio Correctional Center, or really, if they are there now. They might have even deported back to Iraq. Details are sketchy, at best. With confidentiality agreements, it’s nearly impossible for even the Youngstown police or the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Dept. to know the current whereabouts, or welfare and safety of these poor souls. Little press was given to this salient and unsettling crisis last summer. Some reports say all of these people are Chaldean Catholics, others say there are some Muslims, too. Some reports claim “dozens” were arrested while other sources and publications report there were over 100 — simply put, it’s hard to tell who these people are. But this we know: They were sent to Youngstown from the Detroit area to be detained until they are deported back to Iraq. If they are sent back there, they will most likely be beheaded or killed by other means, and surely many will fall prey to torture and other horrible acts, They were reportedly arrested by ICE in Michigan and are victims of President Donald Trump’s travel ban and deportation and immigration policies. U.S. District Court Judge Mark Goldsmith, U.S. District Court Judge for the Eastern District of Michigan, issued a stay on deportation of these individuals on June 22. Although some of these inmates had serious felonies, most of these crimes were committed when these people were in their teens. Although details are nebulous, some children are even being detained, according to reports. "Irreparable harm is made out by the significant chance of loss of life and lesser forms of persecution that Petitioners have substantiated," the judge wrote. "Such harm far outweighs any conceivable interest the Government might have in the immediate enforcement of the removal orders, before this Court can clarify whether it has jurisdiction to grant relief to Petitioners on the merits of their claims.", WXYZ Detroit reported.
Meantime, according to Hammad’s live-in girlfriend, Tracy Hendrickson, “On February 25, 2017, my estranged husband's girlfriend, April Trent Vokes (who was once also related to Brian Hendrickson by being married to Brian's cousin) drove my son, Bryce Hendrickson, her own two sons - John Shively and Josh Haber - as well as Joshua Williams, who was Bryce's cousin, to Nasser’s house where they knew I was staying.”
Long before it all ended in a brawl and a gunfight, Nasser Hammad and his girlfriend were being harassed and threatened on social media, like this post — with two of their aggressors and attackers from late last February brandishing these lethal firearms.
“In a police report taken that same day, April admitted to police her intent for going to Nasser’s home that day was so the young men could inflict bodily harm upon him (Nasser Hammad). This is documented in a police report and was brought up during the trials,” Hendrickson said in a long overview of Hammad’s case.
The sad thing is in Hammad’s case, when all was said and done, two of his aggressors laid dead and another two were seriously injured. Even Hammad was badly injured, reports say.
These days, when we see a violent episode on the news involving someone of Arabic origin, we immediately think of terrorism. ISIS did not, and cannot claim Hammad as one of their own – this poor victim of the worst form of domestic terrorist threats upon himself and his loved one, Mr. Hammad, was only practicing his rights under the Castle Doctrine Law. And Al-Adi, from all accounts has been living the American Dream as a small business owner and a well-liked and respected member of the Youngstown business community.
“Upon arriving on Nasser’s property with at least four armed men, April, and her son John Shively, immediately came out of April's van and began aggressively approaching Nasser while yelling and making false accusations. Nasser only came out of his home when he heard a vehicle pull onto his gravel driveway thinking it was a potential customer interested in purchasing landscaping rocks or material,” Tracy Hendrickson writes.
“Nasser had never seen or met April or her son John Shively. As one could imagine, he was confused when he was approached by the unknown individuals. Almost immediately thereafter, the side van door slams open and at least three additional men wearing hoodies came darting towards Nasser and took him to the ground. While Nasser is on the ground, these men began kicking Nasser in the throat, head, stomach, etc. John Shively testified to this beating/assault on the witness stand during this testimony,” she continues.
Although virtually all news accounts of Hammad’s sad case, which is not only a tragedy but a travesty, there are a few news reports that attempted to treat Hammad fairly. The Vindicator, the Mahoning Valley’s leading print journalism source, and The Vindy’s sister news station, 21 WFMJ, wrote some significantly salient and rather fair and balanced accounts of Hammad’s personal war with people who only can be considered as true miscreants and troublemakers.
In an online offering titled “Defense attorney opens up about Nasser Hammad and capital murder trial,” WFMJ online reports, “One of Nasser Hamad's defense attorney's, Geoffrey Oglesby, said the recent sentence against Hamad was the best outcome the defense could have asked for under the circumstances.
“In a phone interview with 21 News anchor Derek Steyer, Oglesby opened up about his client and the trial,” WFMJ online reports.
“Oglesby says looking back, one thing that stands out was the fact they weren't able to strongly send the message to the jury that Hamad did not know who the attackers were the afternoon of February 25th,” WFMJ online continues.
"`The fact that all this stuff was going back and forth was really inconsequential - he didn't know who the people were that came over, so there is a different type of fear when you’re fighting someone unknown as opposed to fighting someone you know’, said Oglesby. `I mean, who walks out their door, gets beat up by strangers and says ok, let me just call 911, people I don't even know. The lines apparently got blurred, so that the message the jury got was that Mr. Hamad knew exactly who these people were because he lured them over there and obviously that message did not get across to the jury that was not the case. Even Mr. Hendrickson's own mother did not know it was him, so they concealed themselves and it just wasn't made clear enough,’" the article relates.
The court and the local media made these two aggressors seem like innocent victims. Do innocents make such threatening and evil social media posts as this?
“As far as the strategy of the defense calling Hamad as their only witness, Oglesby admits there probably should have been character witnesses during the trial, not just the penalty phase,” WFMJ says.
"`They came out as character witnesses when Nasser stood convicted and said he was honest, so you can imagine how powerful their testimony would have been had they come out during the trial,’" said Oglesby in this article.
“Hamad told the judge he wasn't properly represented by his attorneys and even quit talking to lead attorneys David Doughten and Robert Dixon. Oglesby said Hamad understood the legal process, but simply didn't agree with certain things over the course of the trial,” WFMJ reports.
"`In this particular situation, Nasser had his own opinion about certain things. As far as I'm concerned, the fact that he doesn't agree with me doesn't make him uncooperative, it just makes him have a different opinion. Nasser just had a different opinion about things and if we couldn't convince him that it was the best way to go then we failed at our jobs,” said Oglesby via WFMJ’s online report.
“Oglesby also said Hamad was almost too honest for his own good, starting with the night of the shooting and not hiring an attorney before talking to police,” WFMJ says.
”He should have obtained an attorney, okay? That was numero uno. The questioning, the tone was appeared to be dedicated to having Nasser say things to dig him He further in a hole. I always tell my clients, when you talk to police, you're not talking to the police to get you off the hook, they're talking to you to get you on the hook," said Oglesby in this account.
“Oglesby says he still stands by the evidence that should have proved Hamad acted in self-defense,” the report said.
"`If he wanted to kill the people, probably the best place to shoot them would have been point blank in the head while they were in the car. The randomness of the shooting clearly shows he wasn't out to get anybody. If you really think about it, the guy that was in the front seat, Shively, when they were leaving, that was the one that attacked him so if it was about killing somebody he would have shot him first,’" said Oglesby in this article.
“Oglesby says there is a chance they will file a motion for a completely new trial, but if they don't, they will file an appeal,” says this television news station’s online offering.
Meantime, WFMJ’s sister media outlet, The Vindicator, reported that sometimes during this high-profile trial in the Youngstown-Warren area, Hammad was his own worst enemy. “I got a big family, big attorney to make this guy look like a joke, coming for you,” Hamad said to Becker, standing about 10 feet away. “You write that PR, I’m going to give you PR,” Hammad boasted in court.
“Hammad tried one time to direct a comment to reporters in the courtroom, asking his attorney, `Can you let me say one thing to the media here that they don’t know about’ but his attorney asked him not to, so reads this article, published on March 3 and titled “Defiant murder defendant Nasser Hammad speaks up at arraignment about ‘lies,’ attorneys and Zionism.
Judge Ronald Rice of Trumbull County Common Pleas Court repeatedly advised Hamad not to talk about the facts of the case because his statements could be used against him, but Hamad spoke anyway,” the article mentions.
“`It’s all lies. I seen weapons, guns,’ he said, apparently referring to things not reported by police about the case. Hamad added he was `defending myself on my own property here,’” The Vindicator mentions.
It might already be far too late to right things in this horrid kangaroo court of sundry tragedies, however. Right now, as Hammad sits in a Lorain, Ohio, maximum-security penitentiary (commonly referred to as a “Supermax prison), on 23-1/2 hour a day lockdown, in a cell by himself. He has just been diagnosed with lung cancer,” said Judi Viets, a friend of Tracy Hendrickson.
“A doctor at the prison sort of said ‘So now you’re going to die in prison,” said Judi Viets, a friend of Tracy Hendrickson. “I can’t believe how cavalier and arrogant this doctor’s comment was – it’s almost like he’s happy that Nasser has a deadly medical condition.”
“He has www.justice4nasser.com, in which people share information on Nasser and his case. It’s a big thing in this area with almost 1,200 followers. We just want a fair trial since the trial that convicted him was not fair at all. The prosecutor knew about the weapons and chose not to bring everything out in the testimony. Whatever April (Trent)’s statement to the prosecutor was not accurate. She lied. She was holding Tracy at the doorway of their house and she was choking her while the others were kicking Nasser,” Viets told this writer in a face-to-face interview.
“Brian Hendrickson got arrested in late November for OVI and wrecked his car. From what I understand, Brian told the cops there were people in the car when he wrecked. He was so stoned, he was delirious. In all truth, he was the only person in the car. A toxicology study is being done on this. Believe me, he is a drug addict and an abuser, and April Trent was his girlfriend.” Viets said.
Dylan Hendrickson’s social media post here — “I’m out to kill Muslims” is a vile example of true hate speech. To say Nasser Hammad had threatening social media posts targeting him is an understatement.
There is an intriguing Facebook page that has followed this case from start to where things lie right now. The Facebook page is under the name Zeus White and this page is filled with the legal terms and their meanings, along with a lot of information on this case that never made the news. Of particular importance are social media postings these invading aggressors and their so-called “friends” bombarded Nasser Hassad and Tracy Hendrickson with – the extreme cowardice and cruelty displayed by these punks is disgustingly evil.
Zeus White’s Facebook page shows the racial hatred involved the photos and social media postings made by Hammad’s attackers with Hammad, who according to even police reports, was laying supine on the ground while his attackers kicked and punched him. The evil smiles on their faces, along with the large guns and knives these punks are wielding, is both startling and horrific.
These young men were not innocents who happened to cross the path of a violent madman, as many probably have conjectured from the biased and unfair news accounts surrounding this case. Not hardly – they were scheming and deviant criminals out to harm Hammad and his loved one.
Writer’s Note: Earlier drafts of this article appeared on Medium and The Smirking Chimp.
