Killing of Vincent Chin

Killing of Vincent Chin
Vincent Chin
LocationHighland Park, Michigan, U.S.
DateJune 19, 1982; 42 years ago (1982-06-19)
Attack type
Homicide by bludgeoning, manslaughter, hate crime
VictimVincent Jen Chin
Perpetrators
MotiveResentment over unemployment in auto industry, blamed on Japanese imports, Anti-Asian racism
VerdictState charges:
Pleaded guilty to manslaughter
Federal charges:
Ebens guilty of one count of violation of civil rights, but verdict overturned
Nitz not guilty of violation of civil rights
SentenceState sentences:
Both perpetrators sentenced to three years of probation and $3,780 fine
Federal sentence:
Ebens:
25 years in prison (overturned)
ChargesState charges:
Manslaughter
Second-degree murder (dropped after plea deal)
Federal charges:
Violation of civil rights (2 counts each)
LitigationEbens ordered to pay $1.5 million to Chin's family, Nitz ordered to pay $50,000
Vincent Jen Chin
Traditional Chinese陳果仁
Simplified Chinese陈果仁
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinChén Guǒrén
Yue: Cantonese
Yale RomanizationChàhn Gwó-yàhn
JyutpingCan4 Gwo2 Jan4

Vincent Jen Chin (Chinese: 陳果仁; May 18, 1955 – June 23, 1982) was an American draftsman of Chinese descent who was killed in a racially motivated assault[1][2][3] by two white men, Chrysler plant supervisor Ronald Ebens and his stepson, laid-off autoworker Michael Nitz.[4] Ebens and Nitz assailed Chin following a brawl that took place at a strip club in Highland Park, Michigan, where Chin had been celebrating his bachelor party with friends in advance of his upcoming wedding. Against the backdrop of high anti-Japanese sentiment in the United States at the time – known as "Japan bashing" – they had assumed that Chin was Japanese, and a witness described them using anti-Asian racial slurs as they attacked him, ultimately beating Chin to death.[5][6]

Although accounts vary, the men were expelled from the club following a physical altercation. Ebens and Nitz eventually found Chin in front of a Highland Park McDonald's. There, Nitz held Chin down while Ebens repeatedly bashed him with a baseball bat until Chin's head cracked open. Chin was taken to Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, where he died of his injuries four days later.[7] In their first trial, Ebens and Nitz accepted a plea bargain to reduce the charges from second-degree murder to manslaughter.

Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Charles Kaufman sentenced Ebens and Nitz to three years' probation and a $3,000 fine, but no jail time. Explaining his rationale, Kaufman said that Ebens and Nitz "weren't the kind of men you send to jail ... You don't make the punishment fit the crime; you make the punishment fit the criminal."[8][9] Described by the president of the Detroit Chinese Welfare Council as a "$3,000 license to kill", the lenient sentence led to an uproar from Asian Americans and spurred the community into activism. The advocacy group American Citizens for Justice (ACJ) was formed to protest the sentencing.[9] The case has since been viewed as a critical turning point for Asian American civil rights engagement and a rallying cry for stronger federal hate crime legislation.[10]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Fukurai 1993 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Civil rights issues facing Asian Americans in the 1990s. Washington, D.C.: United States Commission on Civil Rights; U.S. Government Printing Office. February 1992. p. 25. OCLC 1084220292.
  3. ^ Japanese American History: An A-to-Z Reference from 1868 to the Present. New York: Facts on File. 1993. p. 117. ISBN 978-0-8160-2680-7.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Kich p374 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ "New YA book details how Vincent Chin's killing galvanized Asian American activism". NBC News. April 16, 2021. Retrieved July 31, 2023.
  6. ^ Kaur, Harmeet (June 23, 2022). "Vincent Chin was beaten to death 40 years ago. His case is still relevant today". CNN. Retrieved July 31, 2023.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Lee p26 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference Burke 2008 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Phe 2023 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference Fish 2017 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).