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Louisiana Businessman Pleads Guilty in Racially-Motivated Assault on Relief Workers in 2012

A Louisiana businessman faces up to a year in jail and a maximum $100,000 fine after admitting in federal court Wednesday that he assaulted two black women working as Hurricane Isaac relief workers in 2012.

Josh Jambon, 52, of Grand Isle, La., pleaded guilty Wednesday in U.S. District Court to two counts of federal civil rights violations. Sentencing was set for October.

Jambon in a cell phone recording of the assault

The boat rental and offshore-supply company owner admitted assaulting two female African-American Hurricane Isaac relief workers on Sept. 18, 2012, because of their race and because of their employment status. The assault was caught on video.

Today on Facebook, the businessman admitted “I lost my cool” before responding to what he described as a “media blitz of my episode.”

In the post laced with misspellings, Jambon said:

i have family and friends of different race and IM FIRM when i say im NOT a Racist !!! i will argue till im dead that im not a Racist.. I look for no recognition for what i do for the schools , private help , adavancement of people that want to get ahead in life . I challange anyone to attempt to do what ive done for minority orphanges in west africe [sic] as well as with in the US. Yes , i used racial comments but only after i was attacked with racial slurs.

His posting continued:

I stand on my story of TRUTH and Honesty.. The TRUE story will come out in the end and the liberals of the world will say im a liar.  i travel the world and believe me there is another side to the story that the US media never presents . I hold truth to the honesty of the fFederal Government that they will handel [sic] this correctly and with dignity regardless of my white race.

The New Orleans Times-Picayune reported that Jambon was upset about damage to his property that he believed had been caused by a different crew and asked to speak to a supervisor.

“During a heated confrontation, Jambon spotted two black female workers who were taking a break and called them racial slurs, including the N-word and ‘monkeys,’” the newspaper reported, quoting court records. The businessman also referred to the two women as "lazy ... sitting under the tree.”

Jambon hit both women in the face before attempting to grab the cell phone of another black crewmember who recorded the encounter so he could delete the video, court records said. The woman who taped the attack told WBRZ-TV that Jambon also spit on her.

The television station reported that when police responded and arrested Jambon, he cursed at a female sergeant of the Grand Isle Police.

Later, the FBI began a federal civil rights investigation.

“Hate-fueled violence has no place in a civilized society,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division said in a statement after Jambon entered his guilty pleas. “The Justice Department is committed to using all the tools in our law enforcement arsenal to prosecute acts motivated by racial bias.”

“By holding Mr. Jambon accountable for his racially-motivated criminal conduct, our office once again demonstrates its commitment to protecting the civil rights of all residents in Southeast Louisiana,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth Allen Polite Jr. for the Eastern District of Louisiana.

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