Malachi Marlan-Librett Must Complete Therapy, Anti-bias Training in Hate Crime Case
The only person charged with a felony in connection with last year’s violent attack on a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA has been given a plea deal to attend a diversion program that could allow him to avoid jail time and have the charges dismissed.
Malachi Marlan-Librett, 28, was accused of assault with a deadly weapon, battery, and committing a hate crime stemming from two separate incidents on the UCLA campus in April and May 2024, according to court documents. Under a plea deal entered on July 7, Marlan-Librett must complete 90 hours of therapy and anti-bias education. If he complies with the terms, all charges will be dropped.
Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman campaigned on a promise to prosecute hate crimes appropriately and released a statement in part castigating former LADA, which said, in part, “For nearly four years, George Gascon has largely ignored hate crimes, which have soared during his administration. Now that he’s 60 days away from a challenging re-election, and the polling looks bleak, Gascon is trying to create the appearance that he actually cares about stopping hate. It’s too little, too late.
Gascon showed how much he cares about hate on Day 1 of his administration in 2020, when he ordered his deputy D.A.s to stop filing hate crime enhancements – which add prison time to those who commit crimes motivated by hate of the victim’s ethnicity, religion, gender, or sexual orientation. After the community protested, Gascon conceded and said he would allow hate enhancements to be filed.”
However, in this case, Hochman and his office seems to believe that this case and the defendant are an exception.
Livestreamer William Gude, aka Film the Police, has pointed out that Marlan-Librett “singled out” Black people as the targets for his assaults.
The charges stem from a violent confrontation on May 1, 2024, when dozens of counter-demonstrators attacked a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA. A civil lawsuit filed by demonstrators against the university accuses Marlan-Librett of using “chemical weapons” and shouting racial slurs during the melee. Footage published by CNN appears to show him kicking demonstrators and swinging a broken broomstick.
Court records also connect Marlan-Librett to an earlier incident on April 28. Los Angeles attorney Judah Ramsey, who was listed as a victim in the case, told The Times that Marlan-Librett shoved him in a UCLA parking lot after following him from the encampment. Ramsey, who was wearing a keffiyeh scarf at the time, believes the altercation was racially motivated. Video shared by Ramsey shows Marlan-Librett and another man yelling at Ramsey and two women as they walked through campus.
A 2019 graduate of UC Santa Cruz, Marlan-Librett later attended a UCLA film program.
Although hundreds were arrested in connection with encampments at both UCLA and the University of Southern California last year, only a small number faced criminal charges. Marlan-Librett’s case was the only one involving a felony that has progressed past the charging stage. Two additional misdemeanor cases were filed by Los Angeles City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto in relation to the UCLA violence.
