TACOMA, Wash. — A Tacoma man pleaded guilty in federal court on Friday to a hate crime and making false statements in connection with a December 2018 racially-motivated assault.
Jason DeSimas, 45, was one of four men from across the Pacific Northwest who punched and kicked a Black man and made derogatory comments about his race at a Lynnwood bar, according to the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Washington Nick Brown.
In 2018, DeSimas was a prospective member of a white supremacist group traveling through Seattle at the time. DeSimas talked about using "mutual combat" against members of groups he opposed, according to Brown's office.
"Mutual combat" involved going into bars and initiating fights so other members of his group could join in. In the early morning hours of Dec. 18, 2018, DeSimas and other group members went into a bar in Lynnwood and assaulted a Black man that was working as a DJ there. The group also assaulted two other men who came to the victim's aid, according to Brown's office.
The attackers shouted racial slurs and made Nazi salutes before and during the assault.
In addition to the assault, DeSimas admitted to making false statements to the FBI during the investigation into the case. He claimed that neither he nor anyone else he was with used racial slurs during the assault. DeSimas later admitted he used a racial slur before, during and after the assault.
Under the plea agreement, both the prosecution and defense will recommend a 37-month prison sentence. The judge presiding over DeSimas's case is not bound by the plea agreement, however.
Daniel Delbert, 24, of Corvallis, Ore., also pleaded guilty to the assault. Jason Stanley, 44, of Boise, Ida., and Randy Smith, 39, of Eugene, Ore., are also charged in the case and awaiting trial.
