Swedish hip-hop artist likens fatal encounter to movie 'Crash'

A lawyer for a Swedish hip-hop artist accused of murdering a pedestrian in a sensational act of road rage invoked the movie “Crash” today in asking for a reduction in the performer’s $1-million bail.

In court papers, David Jassy’s attorney wrote that the fatal encounter in a Hollywood crosswalk was a “prime” example of the Academy Award-winning film’s “thesis ... that random interactions of diverse people in a City as frenetic as Los Angeles can lead to disastrous consequences.”

Police say Jassy, 34, punched, kicked and then ran over John Osnes, a 57-year-old jazz pianist, during the Nov. 23 incident. Witnesses told police that Osnes, who did not own a car and was a stickler for pedestrian rights, struck the front of Jassy’s SUV after it edged into the crosswalk.

In the filing, lawyer Donald Etra wrote that further investigation and forensic tests were required to determine the facts, but his summary of the alleged crime suggested Jassy may contend that Osnes played a more aggressive role than authorities have said. The lawyer labeled the incident a “fight” and said Osnes was “angry that his way was partially blocked” and had “pounded his fists on [Jassy’s] vehicle.”

Osnes was an inch taller than Jassy, according to jail and coroner’s records, but Jassy outweighed him by about 40 pounds. Jassy “has never been in trouble before, and, never in his wildest dreams did he ever think he would find himself in jail, especially for an offense as serious as this one,” his attorney wrote.

He arrived in October from Sweden, where he has an 11-year-old son and a following as performer, songwriter and producer. His work in the U.S. includes rapping on the album of “High School Musical” star Ashley Tisdale.

In asking that his bail be reduced to $100,000 to $250,000, his lawyer noted that Jassy surrendered his passport and agreed to electronic monitoring. A spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office said prosecutors would oppose at a Jan. 23 hearing any reduction in bail. A memorial service for Osnes is planned for Saturday at 1 p.m. at the Piano Bar in Hollywood.

--Harriet Ryan

Photo: Actor Matt Dillon in a scene from "Crash." Credit: Lorey Sebastian / New Line

Comments

[gdub]

bull. even in an ant hill the ants know their duty, get their job done. same for a beehive. weak people want to blame others for their behavior. your behavior, my behavior, everyone's behavior is theirs to own. the soundtrack to this message is "Hair"...this is the age of responsibility...can you dig it????...gdub

[Annie Goglin]

I'll bet the Swedes are just tickled to claim this hip-hop "artist":
Here's some of his "art":
"What up, what up mommy what it is what's good
I make you shine like a star up in hollywood
I'll be your knight in shinig armour
Your prince in the saga
Never catching me bringin' drama, never that
Whoa!! you run the club like monopoly
Curves looking like u won the lottery
and Ima be good like water to a whale
Jassy world miss Ashley Tisdale".
riiiigggghhhht.

[bengt]

Jassy is a convicted bank robber...

[Sean K]

Sure, likely story.... the "random interactions of diverse people in a City as frenetic as Los Angeles can lead to" some privileged rich snob in an SUV beating an elderly man to death for having the nerve to touch his car when he drives into the crosswalk. Jurors, you know what to do. Hang this guy.

[B. larry]

Ah yes, the famous Haggis defense. Is the guy implying that he was just craving a connection with another human being so badly that he decided to beat a dude and then run him over with his Land Rover? And, by the way, his LAND ROVER? I hope this crazy Norwegian gets what's coming to him.

[Joe]

Scumbag. Dude is just gonna run if he gets out.

[Roger Krueger]

When I first saw the headline I was thinking of the other "Crash" movie, the one based on the J.G. Ballard book about people who got off on car accidents. Would've been a lot more interesting that way really.

[AChen]

This is a case where both parties obviously could not control themselves. On one hand, you have the driver, who beat down an older man and ran him over. There is something messed up about a guy, or the way he's been raised, when he thinks it's perfectly all right to thrash an old man.

But on the other side of the coin, you have this old man, this "stickler for pedestrian rights." So a car pulls into a crosswalk, maybe accidentally, maybe on purpose, and instead of giving the driver a dirty look or some choice words, what do you do? Strike his car?

Why?

So the driver's reaction was excessive, yes; he didn't have to go all out and kill the old man, and he may end up having the book thrown at him. But then again, why did the old man have to strike the car? Was that necessary? If you want to start a fight, make sure you're ABLE to end the fight; do not start what you cannot finish.

[tsarina]

In California, pedestrians have the right of way in EVERY marked crosswalk and EVERY intersection even if there is no crosswalk.

As a pedestrian, I can tell you that drivers in LA flagrantly disregard this fact.

If I were on the jury, I would say that it doesn't matter what happened before, he is guilty because he entered the crosswalk while a pedestrian was crossing. END OF DISCUSSION.

[K22]

Jassy: This may be Hollywood, but you're not living in a movie. This is real life and you killed an innocent human being because he happened to get in your way, and you were in a tantrum/rage. Time to pay the consequences for your horrible actions. It's hard to believe someone would offer up such a lame excuse for RUNNING OVER a living, breathing human being, but this is the world we live in now. I hope they throw away the key.

[Bosse]

Hi. It is not true that he has never been in trouble with the law. Back in 1993 he robbed a bank in Sweden. He got arrested one hour later, in his home, counting the loot, because he was stupid enough to use his own car as a getaway vehicle.

[A. Lohman]

Jassy is a convicted bank robber......in Solna, Stockholm where he grew up. He was 16 yrs of age when he figured that he could take other ppl money.
Scum of the earth. We are very happy here in Sweden to get rid of him - Give him 50 years at least!

[Dana Garcia]

What a despicable low-life. This creature purposely killed a man and now he wants to characterize his crime as some sort of performance art.

[Obama rules]

this guy have criminal records back in sweden to ! give him life sentence ! case close

[L.D.]

as someone who primary mode of getting around hollywood, is walking.
I have to agree with the comment above.
Drivers in L.A. have no regard for pedestrians right of way.
And its not just people driving cars, The MTA bus drivers are just as bad.
I had to file a complaint against a MTA 780 Rapid bus driver last year, after allmost hitting me when more than half way through crossing the pedestrian cross walk (which has a ped crossing sign posted that flashes to let motorist know to slow down) because he sped right through with out slowing down. I was able to get the bus number off the back of the bus as it sped away after crossing the rest of the way across the street.
I called and complained, and was given the standard we will look into, can we get your phone number so we can contact you back. never heard anything back from them.

just because this driver claims the guy he pushed kicked and then ran over hit his car with his hands doesnt mean the guy did so. are there any witnesses to back up this wanna be's claim? and if he struck his car wouldnt there be some sort fingerprints on the hood of the car or fist prints to back this claim up.
even if the man stood up for himself pounded his fist on the car please tell me how this clown can use a movie like crash to try and justify Kicking, Hitting then running a man over in cold bold.

throw the book at this clown, he needs to go to prison for life

[Crash Burn]

What upsets me about this is that we are going to be doing Sweden such a favor for locking this psychopath up for the rest of his life and I think that they are still not going to give us a discount at Ikea. How about it Sweden 1% off for every year?

[Swedish]

David is good person and I hope that he can return to Sweden soon.
As a person he have helpt lots of youth people thruth his music and personality and always been a good person. I can not imagine this, it MUST BE AN ACCIDENT A MISTAKE!!! Pls realese him.

A swedish person who knew David.

[Lars Karlsson]

Send David Jassy back to sweden! why should the american taxpayers pay for him??