Rallies Planned for Jailed Designer Anand Jon
Supporters of jailed designer Anand Jon are expected to gather at two events on March 29 in Little India in Artesia, Calif., and on April 2 at Los Angeles Superior Court to voice concerns about the treatment of Jon in California’s legal system.
The designer is being held on $1.3 million bail and is facing multiple accounts of rape and other sexual assaults against 20 girls and women between the ages of 15 and 27. Jon is in Los Angeles County jail, but his case extends across several jurisdictions, including New York and Texas. His family and supporters have gone on the record saying that the designer was denied his civil rights because of an allegedly impartial preliminary hearing. His supporters argue that the Los Angeles District Attorney’s case against Jon is based on testimony at a grand jury hearing rather than on physical evidence.
Organizers of the West Coast events also staged a vigil on March 19 at the New York Criminal Courts Building, where Jon’s sister and several models spoke in support of him.
Jon has also been seeking the aid of the Indian government. Indian human-rights attorney Majeed Memon met with Jon for several days in Los Angeles and is discussing the case with the New Delhi government, seeking to possibly have Jon released or deported. Before being taken into custody, Jon was living in Beverly Hills and New York.
A Web site, www.supportanandjon.com, has been launched to inform interested parties about the case. —Robert McAllister
