Florida white man, Jordan Patrick Leahy, has been found guilty of a federal hate crime in the road rage attack on a Black father, who happened to be a martial arts expert, back in 2021.
Leahy was convicted of a hate crime that stemmed from a road rage incident involving a Black martial artist father, identified as J.T. The 29-year-old was reportedly found guilty of interfering with J.T.’s federally protected right to drive on the street by a federal jury in Tampa on Aug. 24.
“Across America, families must be able to freely travel our public streets without fear of being attacked because of race,” Assistant Attorney General Clarke said. “This verdict should send a strong message that the Department of Justice remains firmly committed to prosecuting, to the fullest extent of the law, those who would use violence to enforce heinous racist beliefs.”
Leahy allegedly tried to run the Black man–who was driving with his family–off the road and assault him in Seminole, Florida, on Aug. 8, 2021. The convicted criminal had reportedly done so only to find out the victim was a mixed martial artist who handed him his a**. J.T. put the bigot in a chokehold.
Court documents indicated that during the road rage attack, Leahy allegedly approached J.T. while he was with his girlfriend and four-year-old daughter. The documents also alleged that he yelled racial slurs at the king fu father and pretended to “shoot” at his vehicle with hand gestures. Prosecutors said Leahy then used his vehicle to try and force J.T.’s car off the road and followed the victim for nearly a mile and a half before sideswiping the man and fleeing the scene. Eventually, the Florida man allegedly caught up with J.T. at a red light, “got out of his car, stormed at [him] and tried to assault him, again yelling racial slur,” the release said. It was then that the victim put his martial arts skills to use until police arrived at the scene.
Prosecutors reportedly said Leahy faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. He was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals pending sentencing.
