Man Accused In MAX Train Stabbing Charged With Assaulting Black Inmate
Jeremy Christian, accused of killing two passengers and wounding a third aboard a light-rail train in Portland, enters for a court appearance in Portland, Ore., Tuesday, July 18, 2017. Christian pleaded not guilty to aggravated murder, attempted murder and other charges.
The man accused of murdering two men on board a TriMet MAX light rail train in May 2017 has been charged with assaulting an African-American inmate in a Multnomah County jail.
Jeremy Joseph Christian has been charged with fourth-degree assault.
On July 29, Christian allegedly assaulted Aundre Dupree Mills, 26, according to court records. Jail records list Mills' race as black.
The assault was first reported by The Oregonian/OregonLive.
Race has been a central part of Christian's case, stemming from a double homicide on board a light rail train in Portland on May 26, 2017. In court documents, prosecutors say Christian, who is white, shouted anti-Muslim slurs at two African-American women, one of whom was wearing a hijab.
Christian faces two counts of aggravated murder, attempted murder, assault and several counts of unlawful use of a weapon. He's also been charged with two counts of second degree intimidation, which prosecutors say show Christian made threats based on the women's race, religion and national origin.
Christian is also facing an assault charge stemming from a May 25, 2017, incident on board a MAX train involving an African-American woman. He's accused of throwing a bottle at the woman and verbally assaulting her.
Christian's attorneys have argued his actions were not based on race. A mental health evaluation conducted by a clinical psychologist hired by the defense was unsealed in December 2017.
In the evaluation, Mark Cunningham, a Seattle-based clinical and forensic psychologist, wrote that Christian denied having any white supremacist beliefs.
“Notably absent from Mr. Christian’s fervent espousal of beliefs and opinions was any semblance of assertions of ‘white supremacy,’” Cunningham wrote in the report.
In April 2017, Christian was seen at a rally in Southeast Portland using Nazi salutes. [Copyright 2018 Oregon Public Broadcasting]
