The Leader-Telegram reports a jury was selected Tuesday for the trial of 28-year-old Cullen Osburn. He’s charged with felony murder and aggravated battery in the death of Hussain Saeed Alnahdi.
The 24-year-old student died from a brain injury in October 2016 following an altercation with Osburn in downtown Menomonie.
Osburn, a convicted felon, was not a student at UW-Stout. He previously was convicted of domestic assault and failure to abide by an order to have no contact with the victim. The charges in Dunn County carry a penalty enhancer for the charges.
According to the criminal complaint:
Alnahdi and his roommates were drinking at their home until about 1 a.m. Oct. 30 2016 and then decided to go to the Menomonie bars.
A witness told police he saw Alnahdi smoking a cigarette outside Toppers Pizza, 406 Main St. E., and stopped to talk to him. They were approached by Osburn, who argued with Alnahdi and yelled at the Saudi native. The witness was unsure what precipitated the confrontation.
Osburn told one witness Alnahdi grabbed the chain around Osburn’s neck, and Osburn said he may have pushed Alnahdi backward.
Another witness said Osburn struck Alnahdi twice in the face in rapid succession, what the witness called “two pieced.” Witnesses pulled Osburn off Alnahdi, and Osburn left the scene.
Police were called to the scene and found Alnahdi unconscious and bleeding from the nose and mouth.
He was flown to Mayo Clinic Health System in Eau Claire, where he died Oct. 31 due to a traumatic brain injury.
Alnahdi, who came to UW-Stout from Saudi Arabia to study English as a second language, was a junior majoring in business administration.
