Proud Boys Guilty Of Assault For UES Brawl, DA Says

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — The two members of the far-right Proud Boys group that initiated a 2018 street brawl outside the Upper East Side's Metropolitan Republican Club were found guilty on a number of criminal charges Monday, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, Jr. announced.

Maxwell Hare and John Kinsman were convicted on charges of attempted gang assault, attempted assault in the second and third degrees and rioting, prosecutors said. The two are facing prison time and are expected to sentenced on Oct. 11.

"As violent extremism rises in America, a Manhattan jury has declared in one voice that New Yorkers will not tolerate mob violence in our own backyard," Vance said in a statement. “"These defendants transformed a quiet, residential street into the site of a battle-royale, kicking and beating four individuals in a brutal act of political violence."

A criminal trial for Hare and Kinsman began in late July. During the trail, Prosecutors described Hare as the instigator of the street fight and Kinsman as "the single most vicious of all the attackers," the New York Times first reported.

Ten members of the Proud Boys, which has been labeled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, were charged in connection with an Oct. 12 brawl following a speech given at the Metropolitan Republican Club by the group's founder Gavin McInness.

The NYPD initially blamed anti-fascist protesters for sparking the fight by throwing a bottle at a group of Proud Boy members, but surveillance video released in December showed Proud Boys charging at anti-fascist protesters before the bottle was thrown.

The NYPD was criticized by local politicians for making no arrests on the night of the fight, despite responding to the brawl in progress on East 82nd Street between Lexington and Park avenues.

Dramatic video shows members of the Proud Boys cornering counter-protesters outside of the club and kicking them on the sidewalk as they lay on the ground. The group is also heard cursing and shouting gay slurs during the assault. As the group disperses, they can be heard saying "Proud Boys, let's go."

Read more: Patch's full explainer on the Proud Boys.