A Turlock father and son will have to stand trial on allegations they attacked a woman outside a bar in what was described as a hate crime.
Eddie Taylor, 57, and Eddie Taylor II, 28, were held to answer on charges of felony battery causing serious bodily injury, with a special allegation that the assault was committed because of the victim’s race, according to Stanislaus County Superior Court records. They also were held to answer for a misdemeanor charge each of battery causing serious bodily injury for attacking a man who tried to step in and stop the assault.
Both men are out on bail and are scheduled for a formal arraignment on June 1.
The charges stem from an incident that occurred on Dec. 23, 2013, outside of Staley’s Club at 426 E. Main St. The victim of the assault was an African-American woman identified in court records as Mcany.
Mcany was outside the bar and passed by a group of men, one of whom made a comment asking why “colored people” were allowed in the bar. She confronted the men about the offensive comment and then walked away. She told the police later that she went off to smoke a cigarette when she was punched in the head by a white man.
According to the Turlock Police Department report she was hit and kicked repeatedly, causing her to lose consciousness and sustain serious injuries which required hospitalization.
During the assault, David Fernandez came out of the bar looking for someone. When he saw the attack, he tried to stop it and protect the woman and was assaulted by the men, sustaining a gash over his eye, according to court records.
The men reportedly left the area before law enforcement arrived, but a description of their vehicle was given and located a short distance away from the scene. The Taylors were identified as the attackers, according to the police report. Mcany also identified them in court as her attackers.
While in custody in the patrol car, the Taylors are said to have used derogatory racial remarks in reference to the victim and made statements about being part of the Hells Angels. At the time of his arrest in January 2014, Eddie Taylor Jr.’s Facebook page listed an association with the Denair White Boys Inc., a reported street gang.
Eddie Taylor Sr. has a prior offense for voluntary manslaughter from a Merced County conviction in 1980 that could be used against him in sentencing if he is convicted on the current charges, according to the criminal complaint filed by the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office.
