THREE DEFENDANTS SENTENCED IN MISSOURI WHITE SUPREMACIST CASE

WASHINGTON, D.C.- The Justice Department today announced the sentencing of three Missouri men, all avowed white supremacists, for participating in a June 2001 racially motivated assault at a Springfield, Missouri restaurant.

“These men committed a brutal crime, motivated by their shared ideology of hate,” said R. Alexander Acosta, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “Racially-motivated violence appalls all Americans and we are gratified that they will spend years behind bars. We remain committed to vigorously prosecuting bias-motivated crimes.”

Michael Angelo Osorio and Mark Thomas Kooms were each sentenced to four years and three months for their roles in the violent, racially-motivated attack on two African-American men at a Denny's restaurant in Springfield. Michael Shane McCormick, who cooperated with the government’s prosecution of the case, was sentenced to two years in prison. Two other defendants, Steven Heldenbrand and Kenneth Johnsen, are awaiting sentencing. All five defendants pleaded guilty earlier this year.

“A civil rights violation is an offense against the entire community,” said Todd P. Graves, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri. “Putting these defendants in prison sends a clear message that those who violate the civil rights of others will pay a price. We will not tolerate bias-motivated crime and we will not allow white supremacists or anyone else who acts out of racial hatred toward others to escape the just consequences of their actions.”

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Springfield Police Department jointly investigated the matter. The Criminal Section of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office jointly prosecuted the case.

Prosecuting the perpetrators of bias-based crimes remains a top priority of the Justice Department. Since 2001, the Civil Rights Division has charged 114 defendants in 73 cases of bias-motivated crime.

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