Jurors convict Ly's killer

Published: Wednesday, October 1, 1997

Wednesday, October 1, 1997

KILLING: Man, 24, is found guilty of stabbing the former VSU president

By Hannah Miller and Frances Lee

Daily Bruin Senior Staff

An alleged white supremacist was convicted Tuesday for the murder of UCLA graduate Thien Minh Ly, and could receive the death penalty.

Gunner Lindberg, 24, was convicted of first-degree murder for stabbing the 24-year-old Ly. A former president of UCLA's Vietnamese Student Union and a Georgetown University graduate student, Ly was attacked while rollerblading on a tennis court at Tustin High School on Jan. 28, 1996.

Lindberg, the second person to be convicted in the attack, could receive the death penalty because jurors decided that the murder was a hate crime, and that it was committed during an attempted robbery.

"We are relieved that justice was served this time," said Trinh Huynh, a spokesperson for the Vietnamese Student Union.

Ly was a "very influential person at UCLA and Georgetown," said VSU external vice president Vy Huynh. "He did so many things, and impacted so many lives.

"I hope that his life won't be wasted, and that more people will realize that hate crimes also happen to Asian Americans."

Prosecutors have said they will ask the jury to recommend death at the conclusion of the penalty phase, which begins Thursday.

The brutal murder was poignant to VSU members: Ly was young enough that some of them had known him personally. And even more damaging were the clear racial overtones of the crime.

During the trial, Lindberg's cousin, Walter Ray Dulaney 4th, testified that Lindberg had told him in a letter that he had "killed a Jap," that the act was "better than a drug," and that it was done on behalf of a "racial movement."

Dulaney said he and Lindberg were founding members of a group called "Insane Criminal Posse" and that they decided it would be a white-supremacist gang.

White-supremacist literature was found in the home Lindberg shared with Domenic Christopher, who was convicted earlier this year of first-degree murder for witnessing the attack. Christopher, now 18, was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison.

Lindberg's attorney, David Zimmerman, insisted the letter was merely a boast and that his client picked up details of the murder from news reports.

The letter was turned over to authorities, who asked Lindberg how he knew Ly had only a car key with him - a fact that wasn't released to the news media. Lindberg claimed he thought of it on his own.

The attorneys for both defendants denied the attempted-robbery allegation, and Zimmerman denied that racism was a motive. Christopher's attorney said that Ly offered the car key to placate the harassing pair.

Since the murder, several friends and colleagues have come forward to pay tribute to Ly, who graduated from UCLA with degrees in biology and English.

Last year's Vietnamese Cultural Appreciation Night was dedicated to the memory of Ly, with a slide show about his contributions. Fusion Pictures has produced a video documentary about his life and death, called "Letters to Thien," and launched a Web site of the same name.

"This case is very important," said Tram Linh Ho, a staffer for VSU. "A lot of people were just wondering why it happened.

"It could have been anyone," Ho added. "It happened right down the street from (UC Irvine). He was just rollerblading."

With reports from Daily Bruin wire services."We are relieved that justice was served this time."

Trinh Huynh

Vietnamese Student UnionRelated Link:

Letters to Thien