LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A California man who injured three Hmong men in a fight must pay their medical bills including more than $6,000 for animals and herbal medicines used in traditional healing ceremonies, a court has ruled.

Chad Wilson Keichler pleaded no contest to civil rights violations for uttering racial slurs against the Asian men during the brawl in Butte, California, and was ordered by a trial court to reimburse them for their medical expenses.

In addition to submitting hospital and doctor bills, the men turned in receipts for herbal medicines and cows, pigs and chickens slaughtered in Hmong "spirit-calling ceremonies."

Keichler opposed making restitution for the nonmedical expenses, but a California appeals court on Wednesday ruled that he should pay because the ceremony is the equivalent of Western psychotherapy.

The Hmong are an ancient people with roots in China. They migrated into Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos in the 19th century. Many came to the United States as refugees after the Vietnam War.

In a letter to the court, victim Xiong Xeng Moua explained: "In my culture, one way of helping a person who has been traumatized ... is to hold a traditional spirit calling to call my spirit back to me."

An expert testified that the Hmong people believe that a person who is attacked may lose one of his many souls and become ill.

The expert said the souls of animals killed during the spirit-calling ceremony are called on to replace the victim's lost soul. The animals are then eaten by attendees as part of the ceremony.
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Why should that poor guy have to pay thousands because of some hmong belief? This story just reaks of CRAP!

Because, like they said, it's equivalent to western psychotherapy...

May reak of crap..but it's a cultural thing and you can't judge their practices on our standards.

But in our system, don't you need to go to a real doctor to get a refund?

Well he shouldn`t have gotten into a fight in the first place. Its their culture and its what they use to heal themselves so he should have to pay for it.

Doesn't treatment have to be by a licenced doctor? I mean... you can't bring somone to court saying because they punched you, they have to pay for 6,000 dollars worth of voodoo magic to heal your spirit. Just because it is their culture, doesn't mean it is medicane. I mean what if you believed in ancient aztec rites and you sacrificed a human being to the sun god to ensure your health. Does that make it right?

6,000 bucks thats way too overpriced

So is that what animal souls are worth?? $6000?

Although it is part of their culture, there is no evidence to suggest the pratices work, even remotely.

Therefore he should not be paying so much - perhaps a fraction however £6000 for a mutual fight is absurd.

Let us remember that they could have got just as good treatment, in fact much better, for MUCH cheaper.

This is a problem in the system that should be identified and solved immediatly.

Although I agree with the acceptance of different cultures , they do live in the us , & therefore as this happend here the guy should have only had to pay the equivalant for what psychotherapy would have cost.