A security officer receives flowers from a man to be placed with the others at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, Thursday, June 11, 2009. (AP)
Erik von Brunn, 32, the son of James von Brunn, who shot and killed a security guard at the Holocaust Museum on Wednesday said his father’s actions were cowardly.
“My father’s actions are unforgiveable,” said Erik. “I do not expect, nor will I accept forgiveness for what he has done.”
The elder von Brunn, 88, fatally shot museum guard Stephen Johns, 39, in the chest after Johns opened the door to let him inside.
Erik said, “I cannot express enough how deeply sorry I am it was Mr. Johns, and not my father who lost their life.”
He said his father’s hatred for Jews and racial minorities destroyed his family and caused the divorce between his father and mother.
Authorities searched James von Brunn’s car and found a notebook of handwritten anti-Semitic rhetoric denouncing President Obama as a puppet for the Jews.
In the notebook, von Brunn wrote, “The Holocaust is a lie. Obama was created by the Jews. Obama does what his Jew owners tell him to do.”
Directing his comments to racists who may agree with or idolize his father’s actions, Erik said, “For the extremists who believe my father is a hero, it is imperative you understand what he did was an act of cowardice. To physically force your beliefs onto others with violence is not brave, but bullying. Doing so only serves to prove how weak those beliefs are. It is simply desperation, reminiscent of a temper tantrum when a child cannot get his way.”
If convicted, James von Brunn faces life in prison without the possibility of parole or the death penalty.
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Comments
While I appreciate Mr. von Brunn's anti-violence comments, there's still the matter of why he was harboring a convicted felon with guns. I can see that he wants this behind him, but there are still some fair questions to ask.
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