Target of Little Saigon Protests Seeks Removal of D.A. From Video Case

Attorneys for Truong Van Tran, who sparked protests in the Vietnamese community by hanging Communist symbols in his video store, asked a judge Monday to remove the Orange County district attorney’s office from the video piracy case pending against him.

As evidence that newly elected Dist. Atty. Anthony J. Rackauckas lacks objectivity in the case, Tran’s attorney cited Rackauckas’ appearance last month at a protest rally in front of Tran’s Westminster store. During the gathering, Rackauckas praised protesters.

“By publicly announcing his support of the protesters, the district attorney endorsed the violence directed against the defendant for exercising his rights guaranteed under the 1st Amendment. . . . The district attorney has thus evidenced his personal animosity and bias toward the defendant,” attorney Ron Talmo wrote in the motion.

Rackauckas plans to contest the motion at a May 14 hearing. His appearance at the rally does not prevent his office from fairly prosecuting the case, officials said.

“We’re handling this case like any other case,” said Deputy Dist. Atty. Dan Wagner, who is overseeing Tran’s prosecution and other charges related to the protests.

Tran’s display of a Communist flag and a poster of Ho Chi Minh in the now-closed store sparked two months of demonstrations.

At a March 3 rally, political leaders including Assemblyman Ken Maddox (R-Garden Grove) presented protesters with a resolution from the state Republican Party commending them.

When Rackauckas spoke at the rally, he stressed that as a law enforcement official he vowed to protect Tran’s 1st Amendment rights to free speech. He also praised protesters’ “message.”

“That message is that you’re living here in a free society and that you’re prosperous and that you’re strong, and that you reject communism,” Rackauckas told the crowd. Authorities said they confiscated more than 17,000 videos at Tran’s store and that 90% of them were counterfeits.