A federal jury has issued a million-dollar judgment in favor of a Temecula man who sued six members of a white supremacist gang who attacked him at a party near Lake Skinner more than eight years ago.

Civil suits had been filed against the six men found criminally liable as well as some of their family members, whom the injured man's attorney calls supporters of the skinhead group.

Attorneys on both sides say verdicts against family members in a case like this are very unusual.

Randy Wordell Bowen, 31, who is black, was beaten and slashed during a 1999 St. Patrick's Day party in a rural area known as Murdock's, east of Temecula. Bowen was first hit from behind while near a bonfire, then slashed across his back with a sharp object that was never found and chased as his attackers yelled racial slurs.

Bowen ran for about a half mile in the dark before finally getting help at a ranch. One resident there called 911 and another went outside with a shotgun to chase away the large group chasing Bowen.

Six members of the Western Hammerskins were ultimately sent to prison in connection with the attack.

In March 2002, Travis Miskam, of Menifee, was sentenced to 20 years and Jesse Douglas, of Temecula, received a 14-year sentence. Both were convicted by a Riverside County jury. Miskam received a longer sentence because of a previous felony conviction and prosecutors say Douglas was the one who slashed Bowen.

A year earlier, three Temecula men, Jason McCully, Daniel Butler and Gregory McDaniel each agreed to four-year sentences. Alan Yantis agreed to a 10-year sentence in October 2001.

At the sentencing of Miskam and Douglas, a Riverside County Superior Court judge said the crime against the unarmed Bowen was unprovoked and done with "a high degree of cruelty and viciousness."

Last week, a jury in Los Angeles returned verdicts in a federal suit filed under the "Ku Klux Klan Act" as well as California civil right laws.

According to Andrew Roth, who represented Bowen in the federal suits, damages awarded in the case total $5.6 million.

A total of $4.9 million in punitive damages and an additional $685,931 in compensatory damages have been awarded, Roth said. The totals include the $1.2 million verdict last week in Los Angeles.

"It took a very long time to get to this point," Roth said. "This was a long, tortuous litigation."

Roth says both the outcome of the criminal case and civil verdicts send strong messages.

"In the mid- and late-1990s, the Western Hammerskins were grabbing a foothold in the Hemet and Temecula areas," he said.

"The criminal case certainly made a difference and our civil case put people on notice that if you foster this sort of activity, you can face civil liability," Roth said of the family members found liable.

"Hopefully it puts a stop to people actively supporting this … thinking it is cute," Roth added.

However, the attorney who represented those who were sued says the civil verdicts say something entirely different.

"This just sends the wrong message" to parents who may be having trouble with their children - even adult children - after finding out they are involved in something negative or hanging out with the wrong people, Thomas Gruenbeck said.

"This tells parents, don't try to help your kids resolve their problems, just get rid of them right away - kick them out of the house," Gruenbeck said.

If you don't do that as a parent, he adds, you could end up civilly liable for keeping them around.

Gruenbeck used the parents of Gregory McDaniel as an example. He said they tried to encourage their son, doing things such as rewarding him when he did the right thing and taking him to church with them.

"And for all their hard work as parents, they get slammed with a $350,000 judgment," Gruenbeck said.

The attorney was quick to point out that, just because jury verdicts have been rendered, Bowen cannot suddenly start collecting money.

"This case is far from over," he said.

Gruenbeck now has a chance to show a federal judge why he believes Bowen's side did not adequately prove there was a conspiracy. And, depending on the outcome of that, both sides in the case can still appeal the decisions made by the jury or the judge.

Gruenbeck said it could be three or four months before it gets to the point of any possible appeals.

"There still remain some serious issues and concerns regarding the viability of the plaintiff's claims," he said of Bowen's civil suit.

"The plaintiff has to show there is an agreement to conspire," Gruenbeck said. "I don't believe there was any evidence of any express agreement to do anything here."

He said there was evidence presented at the trial that family members knew those involved with the white supremacist group had tattoos that should have tipped them off.

There was also evidence that a computer in a family home was used to create a Western Hammerskin newsletter and that the parents should have been aware of that activity as well, Gruenbeck said.

And the argument was that, by doing nothing to stop it, they joined in the conspiracy, Gruenbeck said.

"The plaintiff's theory was that (the family members) 'acquiesced' to it," he added.

Roth contends that those family members sued were "very active" in the actions of those involved in the Hammerskins.

"We were not just suing for the violent crime committed against Randy, but it is also because of the conspiracy to deprive him of his rights," Roth said.

Bowen could not be reached for comment about the recent civil verdicts. Bowen and his wife just had a baby, Roth said.

"He feels a lot better now that this part is over," Roth said of his client. Bowen underwent almost two years of psychological counseling after being attacked, the attorney said.

"He still has some pain where he was stabbed and slashed, but he is doing better," Roth said.

- Contact staff writer John Hall at (951) 676-4315, Ext. 2628, or jhall@californian.com.