Hunter Gets 69 Years in Hmong Death

[devilgrrl]

Source: Associated Press

A white hunter convicted of killing a Hmong man as they both stalked squirrels in the woods was sentenced Wednesday to 69 years in prison.

James Nichols, 28, of Peshtigo, was convicted last month in the death of Cha Vang, a 30-year-old father of five. The slaying rekindled racial tensions in northern Wisconsin, where a Hmong deer hunter fatally shot six white hunters three years ago.

Nichols, a former sawmill worker, claimed he acted in self-defense when he shot and stabbed Vang Jan. 6. Prosecutors argued he took advantage of the isolation in the woods to act on his prejudice against the Hmong.

Nichols was arrested after he sought treatment at a hospital for gunshot wounds to both of his hands, about the same time Vang's hunting companions reported him missing. Nichols initially said an unknown gunman shot him miles from the wildlife area.

But he changed his story after a deputy asked why he did not call police, and he helped with the search for the body, leading investigators to the area where a search dog found it the next day under a log. An autopsy indicated Vang was hit by a shotgun blast and stabbed five times.

Read more: http://enews.earthlink.net/article/nat?guid=20071128/474cf5d0_3ca6_15526200711281208847227

[Judi Lynn]

1. Thanks. Hope he'll be in there a long time. What a pathetic ass.

Apparently if you kill the other guy, you don't always win.