Gazette Article: UMass group defends student in stabbing case
Daily Hampshire Gazette Article, 2/14/08UMass group defends student in stabbing case By KRISTIN PALPINI Staff WriterDaily Hampshire Gazette - Thursday February 14th, 2008AMHERST - Rarely is a man charged with attempted murder embraced by the community, but at the University of Massachusetts a group of students, faculty and staff is rallying behind Jason W. Vassell, a student accused of stabbing two men earlier this month. Although Vassell allegedly did the stabbing, members of the newly formed Committee for Justice for Jason Vassell say Vassell was acting in self-defense. Vassell, a 23-year-old UMass biology student, is the victim of a hate crime, the group claims, and he should not be subject to the serious criminal charges facing him.‘This could happen to anybody, and that’s what our common interest is right now,’ said Tracy Kelley, the committee’s executive secretary and Vassell’s partner.‘Regardless of your sexual preference, gender or skin color, you can be touched by some awful violent situation like this,’ she said.Justice for Jason supporters will share their understanding of how the incident unfolded with the community today at 5 p.m. in UMass Campus Center Room 163C. During a panel discussion, ‘Building a Safe and Inclusive Campus Climate for All,’ committee members will offer further details of the event and attempt to raise awareness about racism in the area.‘The hate crime brought this all together, but we need to address the campus climate,’ said Kelley. ‘This is an isolated incident, but it has larger social implications that need to be addressed.’According to UMass officials the incident occurred around 5 a.m. on Feb. 3, inside MacKimmie dormitory, Vassell’s home. It involved three men: Vassell, who is black, and two white men who are not UMass students. One of the men involved in the melee, John Bowes, 20, instigated a verbal confrontation when he yelled racial slurs at Vassell, police said.The yelling escalated into violence. Vassell’s nose was broken and Bowes, along with the other man, 19-year-old Jonathan Bosse, were stabbed.Bowes is being charged with disorderly conduct, civil rights violations with injury, and assault and battery to intimidate with bodily injury. Bosse has not been charged. On Feb. 7, Vassell pleaded innocent to two counts of armed assault with intent to murder and two counts of aggravated assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.‘It seems like this is a really excessive reaction,’ said Tobias I. Baskin, a UMass biology professor supporting Justice for Jason. ‘I’m very worried that he is being charged like this because he’s a black kid with a knife and it’s almost like (the authorities think) ‘He’s a gang member, let’s just throw him away,’ but that’s not what we have here.’Justice for Jason is also seeking to raise $15,000 to fund Vassell’s legal battle. A petition is now circulating online, www.ipetitions.com/petition/justiceforjason/, calling for the charges against Vassell to be reviewed.Justice for Jason’s account of the events on Feb. 3 does not refute police reports, but adds more detail to them. Kelley said the committee’s report is a compilation of witness interviews. UMass Deputy Police Chief Patrick T. Archbald declined to comment on the report.According to the committee’s findings, outlined in a letter to the campus community, the incident was sparked at 4 a.m. when two women visiting Vassell’s dorm opened a window and found a man’s face pressed against the window staring back at them.When Vassell asked the man (allegedly Bowes) to explain himself, the man went into a ‘loud tirade of racial invectives and violent threats directed at Vassell,’ the report states. Vassell then told him to go away, but instead of leaving, the man allegedly began kicking the window. The women then left the room and the police were called.While waiting for the police to arrive, Vassell called a friend for support, the committee claims. When Vassell opened the door to let his friend inside, Bosse and Bowes also entered the lobby.One of the men then assaulted Vassell, breaking his nose, the report said. Following this, Bosse and Bowes were stabbed.‘We’ve been working steadfastly since Feb. 4, mobilizing the community, reaching out to faculty, administrators and students, local organization, people in Boston, to mobilize around this issue,’ said Kelley. ‘We have to do more to address everyone’s safety.’Kristin Palpini can be reached at kpalpini@gazettenet.com.