As RedState has previously written, Cincinnati, Ohio, was the site of an attack on a man and woman, both of whom are white, late on Friday, July 25, by what in early video taken by onlookers of the incident appeared to be a mob of Black people. What RedState’s Ward Clark wrote on July 28 reminds us that it’s wise to hold off on snap judgments about viral news stories–especially anything that could involve race: (emphasis added)
A white couple was brutaIIy beaten at a jazz festival by a black “teen mob” in Cincinnati yesterday.
0 national coverage. pic.twitter.com/IgPnVYwbme
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) July 27, 2025
At first look, this appeared to be a racially motivated hate crime. And, to be fair, in the first round of videos, we don’t see the moments leading up to the attack.
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Now, though, it’s not clear that race was the factor that it may have appeared to be in the first video. Some new information has come to light that puts a different slant on this event. Note that the woman who was attacked is lying inert on the pavement, eyes open and staring; this is the sign of a concussion, possibly serious, although later in the video, she is seen being assisted to her feet by a black man. That after the man who was beaten appeared to throw the first blow – an open-handed slap, but the first blow nonetheless.
You can watch the more recent video in Ward’s story (the first one linked below). We also wrote about Senator Bernie Moreno (R-OH) taking to social media to release images of the injuries to female victim, Holly, while criticizing Cincinnati Councilwoman Victoria Parks for how she spoke about the victims in the comments on her Facebook page:
The victim, who is being referred to only by her first name at this time, was downtown during the annual Jazz Festival to attend a birthday party. After an altercation between a man and a group of other men, Holly was sucker punched, leaving her incapacitated on the ground and bleeding from the head and mouth.
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Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH) has released graphic photos of the victim of a violent attack in Cincinnati after a local city councilwoman claimed she “begged for that beatdown.”
READ MORE: Video Captures Violent Brawl in Cincinnati That Left Two Injured
It’s now been nearly a week since the attack, and we’re no closer to fully understanding what happened and how many people will face legal repercussions from the early morning events. On Friday, we got something of an update during a press conference from Police Chief Teresa Theetge, who said that there are now six suspects charged, while three remain at-large:
Authorities had previously said five people had been charged, three of whom had been arrested. Theetge said Friday that six people had now been charged with felonious assault and aggravated rioting. The city’s fugitive apprehension unit is pursuing the three suspects who have not been captured yet.
Theetge also said that six victims have been identified in the viral attack – five males and one female. They were subjected to “unimaginable physical violence,” she said.
One of the suspect was scheduled to be released on a $270,000 bond on Friday. Thirty-nine-year old Jermaine Matthews was charged with two counts of assault, two counts of felony assault and aggravated riot.
In an interview with Fox News Digital, Matthews’ attorney, Brandon Fox, explained:
The way that it works, he’s got an electronic monitoring component to his bond. Basically an ankle monitor. So, while he posted the financial component, it still requires the probation department to come over and ensure that the ankle monitor is on, [to] tell him the rules, where he can go when, he can go there, that kind of stuff.
Back to the presser. The mayor of Cincinnati, Aftab Pureval, also spoke on Friday, condemning the councilwoman’s Facebook comment about the victims:
“I profoundly disagree with Councilmember Victoria Parks. No one deserves to be a victim of violent crime, ever,” Pureval said. “And we are working very hard to make sure that a fight like that doesn’t happen again in our city.”
My colleague Bob Hoge wrote that one of the victims Mayor Pureval was talking about told Vivek Ramaswamy that “she hadn’t heard” from either Buckeye State or Cincinnati officials:
Former GOP presidential candidate and current Ohio gubernatorial hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy posted to social media Monday that he had spoken to the female victim, who was sucker-punched, hit her head and the pavement, and was seen with blood coming from her mouth. He wrote that she told him that as of Monday afternoon, she hadn’t heard from a single state or local official.
That still hasn’t happened, it appears.The mayor was pressed by a reporter on whether he had yet made an effort to speak to the victims:
Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval says he hasn’t talked to any victims of the attack: “We have significant other public safety challenges.” pic.twitter.com/dzw7t1u8Bo
— Fox News (@FoxNews) August 1, 2025
Sure, he starts out by simply answering no. But listen as he pulls out the stock, progressive excuses for whenever anyone points out how dangerous blue cities have become, complete with a reference to the scourge of “gun violence,” and saying that they are working hard to keep children in the Queen City safe. The press conference, if anything, leaves us with more questions than answers. Hopefully, we’ll find a way to solid factual ground sooner rather than later.
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