A Native American teenager from Kentucky severely beaten by a Ku Klux Klan (KKK) group was awarded $2.5 million in damages for the injuries he suffered.
The members of the Imperial Klans of America, a KKK group in Kentucky, mistakenly thought Jordan Grover, 16, was an illegal Latino immigrant. They beat him up severely. But Grover is an American citizen and has Panamanian and Native American descent.
Gruver was severely injured. He suffered a broken jaw, broken left forearm, two cracked ribs and cuts and bruises.
He testified at the court that he has suffered permanent nerve damage and psychological trauma. He also has mental fears and is afraid to leave home and suffers from sleep depravity, according to a CNN affiliate WLKY.
Three members of the group also testified at the courts how they beat Gruver after getting orders from their leaders.
Gruver filed a lawsuit against Imperial Klans of America with the help of Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and sought financial damages.
The all-white jury of seven men and seven women found the Imperial Klans of America and its founders Edwards and “Grant Titan” Jarred R. Hensley guilty for beating Gruver severely and issued a verdict making them pay $1.5 million in compensatory damages and $1 million in punitive damages.
The SPLC will try to recoup the funds by breaking up the group’s assets, which includes a 15-acre compound in Dawson Springs, Kentucky.
The verdict included $1.5 million in compensatory damages and $1 million in punitive damages against "Imperial Wizard" Ron Edwards.
SPLC founder and chief trial attorney Morris Dees, who tried the case told
CNN.
We look forward to collecting every dime that we can for our client and to putting the Imperial Klans of America out of business.
The people of Meade County, Kentucky, have spoken loudly and clearly. And what they've said is that ethnic violence has no place in our society, that those who promote hate and violence will be held accountable and made to pay a steep price.
