Indianapolis man testifies that assault on
homeless man was ‘preemptive strike’
By Chris Jacobson
An Indianapolis iron worker took a page out of President
Bush’s book when explaining to a jury why he attacked a
homeless man in an alley after a football game last November.
When Marion County prosecutor Glenn Simmons asked William L.
"Butch" Riley, 38, why he poked Timothy Upshaw Jr. in the
right eye and groin with the tip of his umbrella in an alley
near the RCA Dome after the Colts thrashed the Philadelphia
Eagles 45-21 on November 26, the defendant had an atypical
response.
“I must and
will act preemptively to defeat any enemy who would impose his
or her will on me, my allies, or my friends,” said Riley, who
was wearing a blue suit and red tie with a bald eagle tie
tack. “That is good enough for our government so it is good
enough for me.”
Riley
testified that after the game he was walking down an alley off
of Virginia Avenue to his car when he saw Upshaw, 52,
approaching from the other direction. As soon as Upshaw was
in striking distance, Riley used his blue and white Colts
umbrella to poke the homeless man in the eye.
According to
Riley, who would only refer to Upshaw as “The Terrorist,”
Upshaw screamed in a language that sounded Middle Eastern but
did not fall. “That’s when I gave him a shot in groin with
the umbrella and he fell. To ensure he wouldn’t get up and
follow me, I jabbed him in the nuts again before getting in my
car and leaving.”
Upshaw was
able to use his good left eye to get Riley’s license number
and report the incident to the police. Riley was booked for
assault the next morning.
Upshaw, who
has recovered from his injuries, testified that he has been
homeless for most of the past 15 years and agreed with most of
Riley’s story except of a couple of details. “I wasn’t going
to attack Mr. Riley. All I was going to do was ask him for a
dollar or some loose change. He hit me before I could get a
word out. And I wasn’t screaming in no foreign languages; I
was just screaming because my eye felt like it was poked out.
I don’t know any other languages besides American. I was born
and raised in New Albany.”
Riley did
admit to having several beers at the game, but disagreed that
it affected his judgment the evening of the incident. “I
drink several beers every single day after work, so that has
nothing to do with it. I felt like my life was in danger and
I wasn’t taking any chances.”
The jury did
not agree with Riley’s reasoning and convicted him on all
counts. Judge John Gibson sentenced him to 100 hours
community service and a $250 fine.
