Two men are accused of being innocent of being beaten and vandalism at an Elton John concert after a four-week jury trial in 2022.
A jury found Thursday that Chad Reeves, 44, and Reese Hopkin, 40, had committed assaults, causing serious injuries to Jaime and Lillian Grenfell, a married couple in their 60s. Hopkin's innocence was also found to be vandalized in connection with bystanders' cell phones in the incident.
The two were prosecuted in 2023 after the video of the incident spread on November 17, 2022.
Prosecutors claim Hopkin and Reeves attacked Reeves in the couple's Chevy Tahoe's rearview mirror as Reeves drove away the first of three sold-out shows.
Jaime Grenfell suffered severe injuries and was unconscious by Hopkin. Prosecutors also alleged that Hopkin grabbed a man who recorded the incident and threw him to the ground.
At the trial, defense attorneys said the video showed only part of the incident. Reeves' attorney Glen Jonas believes the viral video was “edited” and claims that Jaime Grenfell attacked Reeves and Woman but was not shown in the video.
They argue that Reeves defended Jessica Santi after Grenfell had an argument with her. According to court records, Grenfell's SUV mirror hit Reeves and yelled, then Jaime Grenfell left the SUV and headed towards Santi, first hitting Reeves.
As for Hopkin, lawyers argued that he was involved in the clash when his wife, Lindsay Hopkin, was allegedly attacked.
Jonas said he and lawyers Raffi Manuelian and Dilan Patel showed that Hopkin knocked down Jaime Grenfell in his face as the alleged victim tried to reconnect in the conflict.
“These two innocent people – Mr. Reeves and Mr. Hopkin – were wrongly prosecuted by the District Attorney's Office and refused to look at the case objectively,” Jonas said. George Gascón charges.
“The bigger picture is that the average person can manipulate the entire public and media to the mentality of pitchfork mobs against innocent people, and the District Attorney’s Office comes with it,” Jonas said.
Manuelian, who represents Hopkin, told the City News Service after the verdict that it was a defense against a man from a family. “It’s all about context,” he said. “Don’t judge people based on what we see on social media.”
Grenfells sued Reeves, Hopkin and the Dodgers for alleging insufficient safety that night – the Dodgers denied that. In the lawsuit, Jaime Grenfell claimed that he and his wife “have suffered head injuries, other contusions and wounds during the attack, and she witnessed her husband’s assault and the injuries caused.”
