DA Refuses to Press Charges in Attack on Local FOX TV Crew

The Sacramento County district attorney is refusing to press charges against a man and a woman who attacked and beat a local Fox reporter and camerawoman earlier this year.

We first brought you the story in February, when many people watched in shock as reporter John Lobertini and photojournalist Rebecca Little were on the receiving end of an angry outburst at the scene of a murder. Little received the worst of the attack, as she was knocked to the ground and kicked in the head:

Fox 40, who employees the two victims, says the DA is brushing the attacks off as an outburst of grief. He says that actions of 57-year-old Chester Jackson III and Jacqueline Jackson (believed to be the father and sister of the murder victim) may actually be considered "measured and restrained."

“His [Jackson's] actions do not rise to the level of a prosecutable case for assault or battery and certainly not attempted robbery," the DA's office said in a press release. "Some may find the actions of Mr. Jackson to be offensive and unacceptable. Others may describe them as measured and restrained in the context of having just lost a loved one to a senseless homicide 13 hours prior to this incident. The District Attorney must evaluate the case in its totality, as would a jury, to determine whether there is a reasonable likelihood that 12 jurors would unanimously convict Mr. Jackson of the above-described charges.”

The DA's release trumpeted a similar message when it came to the sister: "Her conduct clearly falls outside the bounds of acceptable behavior, is highly offensive, and technically qualifies as a misdemeanor assault or battery. However, when viewed in the context of the emotions, anger, and frustrations that surely accompanied the very recent murder of her brother, a prosecution for misdemeanor assault or battery is not warranted.”

Visit our original story for more videos of the incident.