Following the denial of her request for a discharge without conviction this afternoon, an activist who was responsible for dousing Posie Parker, a controversial British anti-transgender rights campaigner, with tomato juice during a raucous speaking event and counter-protest, has stated that only God has the authority to judge her.
In connection with the incident that took place on March 25th, 2018, at the Albert Park band rotunda in Auckland, Eli Rubashkyn was found guilty of two counts of assault.
With the assistance of his attorney, James Olsen, Rubashkyn entered a guilty plea to the charges in June. The brief appearance before Judge Claire Ryan was conducted through an audio-visual link.
Yesterday, Olsen had submitted a request to Judge Kirsten Lummis, requesting that his client be discharged without conviction. He stated that the overall gravity of the offense was low, and that Rubashkyn had been attempting to prevent Parker from expressing her anti-transgender views.
Despite this, Judge Lummis did not believe the argument.
In her statement to the court today, she stated that the severity of the offense was increased due to the fact that it was a “well thought out premeditated assault” that Rubashkyn later justified to the media.
Although Judge Lummis acknowledged that Rubashkyn, whose real name is Eliana Golberstein, was sorry for her actions, she pointed out that Rubashkyn did not offer an apology in any of the documents that she submitted to the court.
“I am left questioning whether there is genuinely true remorse, and I can certainly appreciate regret and that you would do things differently if you had your time again, but in terms of remorse, I’m left wondering.”
When she handed down the sentence for Rubashkyn, she referred to the personal challenges that Rubashkyn had encountered as an intersex person. These challenges included being stabbed and shot at in Rubashkyn’s home country, as well as Rubashkyn’s volunteer work supporting organizations that support gender-diverse movements.
“You have become an advocate for the rainbow community… you are grateful for what New Zealand has offered you.”
Judge Lummis informed the court that Rubashkyn had been the target of death threats in the aftermath of the assaults, and she concurred with Olsen’s assertion that Rubashkyn had already been subjected to an extent of punishment that was sufficient.
Taking this into consideration, Judge Lummis made the decision not to impose a penalty, which ultimately led to Rubashkyn being found guilty of the crimes he committed and being released from prison.
The charges carry a maximum penalty of either a fine of $4,000 or a prison sentence of up to six months.
“Don’t lose faith or hope from that decision, I know it’s not what you wanted,” she informed Rubashkyn of her decision.
“I wish you the very best of luck on your continued journey from here.”
Rubashkyn turned to the reporters as he was leaving the courtroom and said, “Only God judges, and I just want God to judge me.”
According to the documents filed with the court, Parker, whose legal name is Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull, is the person who filed the complaint for one of the charges.
One of the individuals who filed a complaint is Tania Suzanne Sturt, who was present alongside Parker at the time in question and who was involved in the organization of the event that took place in March. Additionally, she was drenched in juice.
“When the liquid first hit my head, I thought it was acid,” Sturt said in a victim impact statement. “I waited for my skin to burn.” Sturt believes that the liquid was acid.
“I felt terror then disgust and violation.”
In her testimony before the court, she stated that she had received therapy for trauma and that she was still encountering symptoms of trauma.
Rubashkyn arrived at Albert Park at approximately eleven in the morning, as stated in the summary of the facts.
Later on, Parker arrived in the midst of a significant counter-protest that included a large number of individuals from the rainbow and transgender communities in Auckland, as well as supporters of these communities.
As Parker made his way into the band rotunda to deliver a speech to the audience, Sturt greeted him with a comforting embrace.
According to the summary of facts, Rubashkyn was also present in the rotunda, and he was carrying a bottle of Keri Premium tomato juice that was one liter in capacity.
Rubashkyn went up to Keen and Sturt and poured the tomato juice over them both, covering their hair and clothing in the process.
In order to remove Rubashkyn from the rotunda, the security escort serving Parker grabbed him, pulled him away, and then forcibly removed him from the area. Subsequently, Rubashkyn was subjected to a water bottle attack.
“Ms Keen ultimately abandoned her public address and was assisted from Albert Park by police.”
It is stated in the summary that neither Keen, also known as Parker, nor Sturt sustained any injuries.
Rubashkyn did not make a statement to the police despite the fact that he admitted to pouring the juice on Parker in an interview with the media that took place immediately after the incident.
In order to convey the message that “her words are blood because they are killing our people,” Rubashkyn wanted Parker to know.
“This is my safe space, my safe haven and I’m not going to let that be taken away from me because this is my home,” Rubashkyn stated to reporters.
Prior to this particular case, Rubashkyn had not participated in any court proceedings.
