Three people arrested in rural Nevada over altercation that Black man says involved a racial slur

RENO, Nevada (AP) — Three people were arrested and charged Wednesday in connection with a verbal altercation last week in Virginia City, Nevada, during which a Black man said a racial slur was directed at him by a man who also said “they have a hanging tree” for people like him.

The incident occurred when Ricky Johnson was collecting signatures for a ballot measure during the popular Hot August Nights classic car festival in Virginia City, a tourist town just south of Reno. Johnson began videoing after the alleged racist comments were directed at him. In the video Johnson demands that the man repeat the words on video.

A loud, profanity-filled argument on both sides followed before a woman told Johnson he was on her property. Johnson repeatedly asks her not to touch him as they move the conversation into the street, the video shows. At no time on the video is the “hanging tree” comment repeated, nor are any racial epithets uttered.

Johnson posted the video to TikTok on Aug. 2, drawing prompt condemnation from local and state officials. The Storey County Sheriff’s Office interviewed Johnson and others involved, then turned over evidence to the district attorney.

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On Wednesday, the sheriff’s office issued a news release saying two women and a man had been arrested and booked into jail. The man in the video was charged with breach of peace, a gross misdemeanor that includes making threatening comments based on race. One of the women was charged with battery and the other with interfering with a peace officer, both misdemeanors.

The arrests drew quick praise from Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford, who is Black.

“The public outcry was heard loud and clear, and steps have been taken to hold these individuals accountable for their racist and unlawful actions,” Ford said.

Johnson, from Houston, was in Virginia City working for Advanced Micro Targeting Inc., a Texas-based company that provides voter outreach and get-out-the-vote services. He was collecting signatures for a proposed Nevada state ballot initiative aimed at capping fees that attorneys collect from clients in personal injury cases.

The verbal altercation occurred in downtown Virginia City, an old mining town that attracts tens of thousands of tourists who walk its wood-planked sidewalks filled with old saloons and stores.

“I’m still shaking every time I think about it,” Johnson told The Associated Press by phone Monday before returning to Texas.

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Kelety reported from Phoenix