The Collegian

Issue date: 10/2/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Andrew Dodson The fire pit behind 228 N. Manning Street, where a Hillsdale College student was first heckled.

A local man sits in Hillsdale County Jail after assaulting a black student Saturday morning.

Robert Shelton, 27, was charged with ethnic intimidation and assault and battery after punching the male junior student and threatening to lynch him.

The student, who requested anonymity for safety, said while walking home from an off-campus house, cutting through alleyways and yards, he encountered a group of local residents sitting around a campfire in the backyard of 228 N. Manning St.

The house sits two doors down from Central Hall.

According to the police report, the student said Shelton complained about college students walking through his yard, before yelling a barrage of racial slurs.

Shelton approached the student and yelled, "Get the f- out! I'm tired of you f- n-s, I don't like you f- n-s, get out of my f- yard!" according to the student's written statement.

The student said he fell to the ground after Shelton punched him twice.

"Then I see his friends get up," he said. "I'm not stupid, I'm not going to sit and get an ass-whoopin'."

Then the student fled on foot.

Several blocks away, he stopped for a breath. He said he lost his shoe.

He said he retraced his steps to find the shoe, but Shelton and his two male friends were marching up and down the street.

They were yelling into the dark.

In one hand, Shelton held the missing shoe, the student said.

They noticed him and approached again. The student said he attempted to reason with them, but was punched again. This time his lower lip was busted.

The student said he punched back, causing Shelton to rip off his own shirt and begin yelling, "White pride! I hate you n-s! I will lynch you right now!"

According to the police report, sophomore Blake Knoblock, a Collegian freelancer and Manning Street resident, approached the conflict to try and resolve the problem. In Knoblock's statement to police, he said he was asked to leave the scene by Shelton. Afterward he called police.

At 3:42 a.m. officers Todd Holtz and Thad Doty arrived at the house.

Holtz approached Shelton for questioning. According to the police report, Shelton avoided talking about the assault. He was arrested and taken to Hillsdale County Jail without incident.

The officers reported that Shelton's blood alcohol level was 0.105 percent. He'd been drinking, a violation of his parole agreement.

Neal Brady, the Hillsdale County prosecutor, said he's seen Shelton before. He sent him to prison for a year in 2007 on larceny charges.

"He needs to be pounded," Brady said. "The facts speak for themselves. He's a thug and he needs to be punished for what he did."

He said he had "a lot of ammunition" against Shelton in court because of the parole violation.

Attorney Barry Poulson will represent Shelton at the preliminary examination next week. He declined to comment.

The student still attends classes.

Dean of Men Aaron Petersen said he feels angry about the assault, but grateful about the student's fair condition.

"It's sad that society has to deal with these problems," he said. "Not much good happens after midnight."

Shelton remains in jail without bond.

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