Generally speaking, your hopes of a successful plea of “not guilty, millud!” fade into the ether the second you beat the crap out of a news reporter on live television.

You might remember Sam, aka “Assad”, and his wive Rosa Barazza as the plucky identity thieves and real estate scam artists who beat the stuffing out of California’s Fox 6 News Reporter John Mattes. While we can all sympathize with the often-irrestistable urge to hit a smarmy television reporter so hard his whole family dies, the man was clearly guilty.

Still, Sam Suleiman’s gonna give a ‘not guilty’ plea a whirl. Suleiman was charged with battery causing great bodily injury, assault with a deadly weapon, making a criminal threat and intimidating a witness. He faces 10 years in prison, and that’s not taking into account his various real estate scams.

Mattes, of course, remains in rough shape, suffering cracked ribs, bite wounds and cuts to his face. And that body slam certainly couldn’t have helped anything. Luckily, reporters are like cockroaches, and possess amazing regenerative abilities. We’re sure he’ll be fine.

Pair pleads not guilty to beating San Diego television reporter [SignOnSanDiego.com]

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