Woman with cane, bystander fight with 'First Amendment defenders' at Brentwood post office

LOS ANGELES - A group of self-described "First Amendment 
defenders" got into a fight with two customers at a Brentwood 
post office on Tuesday morning, sending a man who jumped in to 
help to the hospital. The fight was caught on camera.

It happened around 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, just as the post office 
was opening. Josh Paris went to the post office, to check his 
P.O. Box. As he did, he saw a costumed man with a camera crew 
walking out.

Paris broke out his camera, and asked the man in an all-white 
costume and visor why he was there. The costumed man said he was 
there for "freedom of expression" and "First Amendment rights." 
He and his crew are self-proclaimed "First Amendment auditors" 
with an online group called Impact Media.

Shortly after Paris' first interaction with the man, chaos broke 
out.

"It was so surreal and out of the ordinary and shocking to see," 
Parris said.

It started with an elderly woman swinging her cane at the group, 
shooing them away. That's when Paris said a bystander named 
Robert jumped in to help the woman. The video crew then attacked 
Robert, with one man putting him in a chokehold while another in 
a fake beard swung at him. Robert was then brought to the 
ground, while another member of the crew stomped on Robert's 
head multiple times.

Paris said he and a few others called 911, and one of the 
attackers ran away. When LAPD officers got there, the man who 
ran away came back, with the camera rolling. Officers put him 
and two other crew members in handcuffs, and paramedics brought 
Robert to the hospital.

"He was having trouble moving his neck, and he was 
hyperventilating," said Paris. "Then as the a few minutes went 
by, his breathing got more labored and I could see he probably 
needed medical attention, which he finally got."

Many witnesses told FOX 11 they thought the fight might have 
been part of a Hollywood stunt. Robert spoke with FOX 11's 
Hailey Winslow later in the day, and he told her that "anybody 
who thinks that this is a setup can have a look at my medical 
records."

Robert was released from the hospital later Tuesday, and said 
he's been in contact with his lawyer and plans to press charges.

https://www.foxla.com/news/brentwood-post-office-fight-caught-on-
camera