Suspect charged with Grant Park cross burning won’t be detained pretrial – NBC Chicago

A man charged with lighting a cross on fire in Chicago’s Grant Park will not be detained pretrial, a judge ruled during a court hearing Thursday. 21-year-old Merlin Lu turned himself in to authorities on Wednesday, and is facing multiple charges in connection with the June 9 incident in which a cross was assembled and set ablaze in downtown Chicago. Stream NBC 5 for free, 24/7, wherever you are. The burning cross, widely understood to be a symbol of racial hate and white supremacy, was intended by Lu to protest the Trump administration, he told NBC Chicago’s Chuck Goudie in an interview. His defense attorney echoed that argument during Thursday’s court hearing. A judge said that while the incident did cause nearly $2,000 damage in the park, Lu is not considered a flight risk, and he was released pretrial, with a court hearing set for June 22. Lu was charged with multiple felony hate crime counts, as well as arson and criminal damage to property in the case. According to a proffer published by prosecutors, Lu was seen on surveillance images entering Grant Park with two planks of wood and several other items on the afternoon of June 9. He was then seen assembling the wood into a cross, which he then wrapped in toilet paper and doused in kerosene. Topping the cross with a red hat, he then propped it against a tree and set it on fire, according to prosecutors. Local He was then seen fleeing the park on foot. According to prosecutors, officers found a hammer and nails next to the cross in the park, along with a lighter, a cigarette butt, and a kerosene bottle cap. The bottle cap and lighter were allegedly bought by Lu on May 31 at a Home Depot store, according to police. After he had been read his Miranda rights, prosecutors say Lu admitted to buying the materials, assembling the cross and lighting it on fire. Several days after the incident, Lu contacted NBC 5 Investigates, and in an interview with Chuck Goudie he said he was the person police were seeking in connection to the burning. He said the act was meant as an act of political protest against President Donald Trump, and that the reason he spoke out was to clarify his intentions. "Yeah, probably. I agree a different protest should have been used). As I've said earlier, I failed in delivering my message, but I believe that right now I'm trying my best to clarify the confusion. And yeah, I don't regret what I did," Lu responded. He will next appear in court on June 22.