The trial of three young men accused of what police believe was a racially-motivated attack on a black man began Tuesday in Courtenay.
The video of an assault on Jay Phillips was posted to YouTube and viewed by thousands worldwide. It shows Phillips being surrounded, then kicked and punched by three men in a parking lot.
The suspects-- David White, William Rogers, and Adam Huber--have denied the attack was racially motivated.
One courtroom observer said the trial started as expected.
"They're still trying to paint Jay as a real bad tough guy when I don't know if that's the case or not," said Joseph Yelder to CTV News. "And the other guys are weak, meek little runts. I heard the word ‘runt' in court today. But still, three wrongs don't make a right. I mean three or four guys jump on one guy. I don't care how tough he is, it's not right."
