U.S. District Choose Gretchen Lund sentenced a Whiting man to 10 months in federal jail Wednesday after he threatened an interracial household subsequent door — and their landlord — till they moved out.
Brian O’Neill, 46, signed a plea deal in April within the U.S. District Courtroom of Hammond for 2 counts of Interference with Housing primarily based on Race and one rely of Making False Statements to Regulation Enforcement, U.S. Legal professional Clifford Johnson stated in a launch. He can even serve two years on supervised launch.
Assistant U.S. Legal professional Thomas McGrath wrote O’Neill focused the household from the day they moved there in June 2022.
It was a “marketing campaign of hate,” he wrote, for the couple and their 5 youngsters.
In court docket filings, O’Neill’s protection lawyer Kerry Connor requested for time served with him paying restitution cash to the household.
O’Neill sat in jail for over six months the place he “had time to significantly take into consideration his ignorant, offensive, and unlawful conduct,” she wrote. He wished to “search out assist for what he has acknowledged as his abhorrent habits.”
Filings present O’Neill yelled on the mom, a lady of shade, that day, saying he warned her landlord towards renting to “folks like her,” filings present. O’Neill later clarified he was speaking about her race.
Bizarre issues occurred within the following months.
Their automobiles had unexplained dents and scratches. O’Neill would scream at them with out provocation. Somebody left a “rotting pumpkin” on their shared property line.
When the girl’s companion eliminated it, their automotive was keyed the subsequent day.
He acquired into an argument with O’Neill in June 2023, as a result of O’Neill thought they had been beginning to inch into his parking house. O’Neill threatened to rape the person and his household, court docket filings present.
The household referred to as the cops.
When police arrived, they famous O’Neill was “erratic” and offended, saying he had a proper to face his floor in entrance of police. O’Neill instructed them he didn’t have a prison file, as a result of he “handles his (expletive) quiet,” in keeping with paperwork.
Officers left with out arresting him.
Afterward, O’Neill instructed the neighbors he was “untouchable” and “may do something he wished,” McGrath wrote.
McGrath famous an unrelated incident caught on video in 2022 the place O’Neill threatened to “(mess) up” one other driver and his household who had been in search of a spot to park in tightly-packed Whiting.
A toddler’s birthday celebration appeared to tip the scales for the household.
After they threw a yard bash in July 2023, the mom rapidly instructed a relative to maneuver when she realized they parked in entrance of O’Neill’s home.
Regardless of this, O’Neill nonetheless screamed racial slurs at her, telling the girl to “get out of Whiting,” the filings present. It was loud sufficient for the household and a younger daughter to listen to, the girl stated.
The household referred to as the cops once more, and put the video on social media.
A few days later, the girl’s companion walked exterior to find somebody had shattered his truck’s window. They determined to maneuver the youngsters out and deliberate a neighborhood rally towards what occurred.
That included hiring a safety advisor.
Police went to speak to O’Neill in a bid to calm him down. They instructed him in regards to the rally.
In response, O’Neill adopted the household’s landlord dwelling, threatening him, including he rented to “low degree (racial slur) trash.”
O’Neill was screaming within the safety advisor’s face, and needed to be bodily hauled away from him, filings present.
Days later, somebody got here by and smashed the couple’s entrance window with a hammer. They determined to maneuver out, nonetheless paying the owner for the 2 months he didn’t hire it out, as a result of they had been so scared of O’Neill’s actions.
mcolias@post-trib.com
