After arrest, Fresno man who pepper sprayed Palestine supporters trades smile for scowl
Because The Fresno Bee no longer routinely publishes police mugshots of crime suspects (a policy that went into effect last year), readers must look elsewhere to view Brian Lee Turner’s booking photo.
The contrast between the expressions Turner wore while allegedly pepper-spraying a carload of pro-Palestine supporters Saturday evening near River Park and the one following his arrest by Fresno police Sunday morning is quite striking.
Turner’s smirk and gleeful grin have been replaced by a scowl.
Nothing like a glaring display of detestable human behavior, captured on video and splashed all over the news, to wipe the smile off someone’s face.
Good luck scrubbing those Google results.
Saturday’s “Peace in Palestine” protest drew some 200 people to Blackstone and Nees avenues, including a vehicle whose occupants waved a Palestinian flag while driving up and down Nees.
While at a red light, one of the occupants implored the driver of a Hyundai sedan stopped next to theirs to honk in support. In response, the man rolled down his window and started shouting, “F- all of Palestine!” and “We don’t support Palestine!”
For emphasis, apparently, the driver pulled out a canister of pepper spray and discharged it into the open windows of the protesters’ vehicle. Twice, according to Fresno police.
“Got all of us,” said one of the four victims, 20-year-old Fresno State student Ahmad Qutami. “Got me and my whole face. In my mouth. My whole neck was red.”
Take it from someone who has been pepper-sprayed in similar drive-by fashion, a few years ago by some punk who apparently didn’t like the way I parallel parked on Fulton Street. It’s not pleasant.
In California, assault with a caustic chemical is a felony punishable by two to four years in state prison and/or a fine up to $10,000. Let’s venture a guess Turner was informed of that fact before he posed for the booking photo.
Assuming his case goes to trial, Turner’s lawyers will surely argue the 62-year-old acted in self-defense. (Police say one of the victims exited the car following the initial verbal confrontation.) But judging by Turner’s gleeful expressions, indicating nothing but pure enjoyment while inflicting pain, good luck convincing any jury.
Devout Zionist or jerk with a quick trigger?
The perpetrator of such an abhorrent act doesn’t deserve a shred of our sympathy. Still, it’s impossible not to be at least a little curious about his motivation.
Is Turner a devout Zionist with deep-seated opposing views in the decades-long conflict between Israel and Palestine? (Zionism and Judaism are not the same thing, as I’ve learned from Jewish friends.)
Or maybe he’s a jerk with a quick trigger. (A search of Fresno County Superior Court records for Brian Lee Turner turned up four traffic citations between 2007-13 but nothing more serious.)
Either way, or something in between those extremes, it makes me wonder.
Likewise, I’m also curious about the female passenger in Turner’s car. Is she his wife, his sister or some other family member? Or just a friend? And why does she appear to be smiling? Is it because she agrees with Turner about Palestine and is happy he pepper-sprayed those protesters? Or perhaps that’s a look of shock and embarrassment?
Wish I knew. No one picked up Tuesday at a phone number listed under Turner’s name.
Again, none of this is meant to elicit any sympathy. Turner deserves to be prosecuted to the fullest intent of the law, if only to discourage future assaults on peaceful protests locally. I just wonder what on earth he could’ve been thinking.
In those initial screenshots, Turner appears to be having the time of his life. In the subsequent booking shot, he looks like a man who knows he made a life-altering mistake.
