Prosecutors in Washtenaw County, Michigan, have authorized criminal charges against a University of Michigan student accused of assaulting a Jewish activist during a free speech event on the university's Ann Arbor campus on Sunday, JNS reported Tuesday.
The Washtenaw County Prosecutor's Office confirmed to JNS that the case had been submitted Monday and that prosecutors had reviewed the evidence before approving the charges.
“We thoroughly reviewed the evidence that was submitted to us," said Alyssa Fountain, an administrative assistant at the prosecutor's office.
The student faces one count of assaulting, resisting or obstructing an officer and two counts of assault or assault and battery.
“There is no court date at this time, but a felony warrant for these charges will be issued by the court and a court date set once she has been arraigned on the charges," Fountain explained.
The incident occurred during an event featuring Jewish conservative commentator Liz Benichou and fellow commentators Cam Higby and Joe Redden, who were speaking with students about Iran and Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Dr. Abdul El-Sayed.
Video footage circulated online appeared to show the suspect confronting Redden and Higby at a table during a discussion about Islam. The woman allegedly struck Redden in the face with her phone before denying that she had slapped him and accusing the commentators of being “anti-Muslim."
The suspect then appeared to approach Benichou, who asked what would happen to her if she “walked around like this in Iran, what would happen to her?"
The footage appeared to show the woman pushing Benichou to the ground and jumping on her before another student intervened and pulled the attacker away.
When campus police arrived, the suspect appeared to resist arrest. After being handcuffed, she was heard shouting, “I should have f-ing killed you when I f-ing had the chance" and “I’ve already been to a mental hospital, and I’ll go again if it means killing her."
University police told JNS on Sunday that the suspect had been processed and released. It remained unclear whether she was still on campus.
In a statement Monday, the University of Michigan condemned the incident, declaring that “physical violence has no place on our campus."
“The university is firmly committed to protecting freedom of speech and expression, and actions that threaten the safety of others or interfere with their right to express their views will not be tolerated," the university stated. “Due to federal privacy laws, the university cannot comment on specific student conduct matters."