Hate Group Hit with $2.75 Million Judgment for Battering Black Musician

A federal court has levied a $2.75 million judgment against Patriot Front, the prominent, violent white-nationalist extremist organization, and its leader Thomas Rousseau.

The judgment, levied Monday in federal district court in Massachusetts, stems from an unpermitted “flash” mob of masked Patriot Front toughs, led by Rousseau, in Boston during the Fourth of July weekend in 2022. According to the court, the fascist marchers victimized a classically trained African American saxophonist named Charles Murrell, who had been headed toward the public library to perform on the street.

Patriot Front cloaks its white nationalism in red, white, and blue. On that early July day, roughly 100 Patriot Front members marched with shields and banners reading “Reclaim America” and toting flags bearing the group’s symbol, a bundle of wooden rods, or fasces (from which the word “fascist” is derived). Patriot Front has been designated a “hate group” by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

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The extremist marchers encountered Murrell on the sidewalk, and according to the court findings, shouted racial epithets like “tar baby” at him. They surrounded the musician, and as Rousseau shouted “Right Screen” the group then pushed Murrell to the right, backing him into the street. He was then bodied into a concrete light post, whereupon Patriot Front members began punching and kicking him.

Boston Police on the scene did not intervene, or track down Murrell’s assailants, although one was recorded on a body cam offering to get him medical services. A police report later concluded that the “incident appeared to be more likely than not motivated in whole or in part by Anti-Black bias,” but no one was prosecuted.

Murrell, who is in his 30s, sustained physical injuries in the attack, including a sprained right middle finger (which was also lacerated), cuts to his head and an eyebrow, and bruises across his face and arms. The hand injury still impairs his ability to play the saxophone for long sessions. In court, Murrell described more serious and lasting psychological injuries that have impaired his sleep and personal relationships. According to the court’s summary, a doctor testified that the attack on Murrell “dampened his passion for music, caused him to isolate himself from family and friends.”

The civil judgement was based on six counts, ranging from “a private conspiracy to deny the equal protection of the laws,” to violations of the Massachusetts Civil Rights Act, to “civil assault and battery,” as well as “intentional infliction of emotional distress.”

The court awarded Murrell $25,000 for his bodily injuries, $500,000 for psychological distress, $230,000 for lost earnings, and imposed $2 million in punitive damages — a total $2,755,000 — plus attorneys fees. The ruling was entered as a “default judgment,” because Patriot Front failed to appear in court to contest the lawsuit. The court found that “Rousseau and Patriot Front are jointly and severally liable” for the damages.

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The judge ruled that punitive damages were “necessary to deter similar acts in the future” — reflecting that the Patriot Front’s remorseless attack had occurred at “Rousseau’s encouragement,” and that “Patriot Front and Rousseau glorified the attack” by posting a video clip of “the group pinning Murrell against the light post” to promote what the judge described as “the view that non-white individuals like Murrell should be subordinated to white people.”

Default judgments can be difficult to collect, but the ruling could put enormous financial strain on the white nationalist group, adding to significant existing legal troubles. Neither the group’s website nor Patriot Front’s active Telegram channel addressed the ruling Monday. The group’s most recent Telegram post is from Jan. 10 — comprising a sort of annual report that touts the group’s more than 9,000 “instances of activism” in 2024, across 48 states and Washington, D.C.

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