Members of a community in San Diego, California, are outraged after a 16-year-old white man pleaded not guilty to charges over a brawl that left black girls with multiple stab wounds to the back. Authorities consider the act a hate crime, as moments before the attack, the boy and other teenagers are said to have racially insulted the African-American teenager.
Community members outraged at City Hall meeting (NBC7 Screengrab)
On Thursday, April 21, the suspect, whose name is being concealed because he is a minor, told the court that he did not stab the young lady – who is also 16 years old – in the back on Saturday, April 16, in front of a group. members of her family at the Woodglen Apartments on Block 12000 on Mapleview Street in Lakeside, California, not far from 67 State Road.
The San Diego County Sheriff’s Office said the incident happened around 11pm and stemmed from an earlier altercation between different but related individuals.
The white teenager got together with others to get closer to the black teenager and her relatives, said Lieutenant Sean Ray, which led to a fight. During the melee, the girl was stabbed twice and the young man fled with his partners. She was taken to hospital for treatment of injuries.
On Monday, April 18, the boy surrendered. His girlfriend was also arrested; however, she was released, although she is said to have brandished a weapon before the battle began.
The teenager’s lawyer asked to be released from his family for home surveillance and GPS surveillance, but the request was rejected by Supreme Court Judge Richard Monroe.
Due to the gross use of racial epithets, charges of attempted murder and assault will be accompanied by special hate crimes, packed with allegations of personal use of deadly weapons and allegations of grievous bodily harm. lethal Weapon. If convicted, he could face up to 17 years in prison.
According to The San Diego Union-Tribune, at a hearing in the San Diego Juvenile Court on Thursday, the boy’s parents, grandmother and other family members were there to support him. The girl, whose injuries were not disclosed, was also present with her mother, aunts and grandparents.
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Ray, who runs the department’s Lakeside substation, said “this is the first hate crime to be investigated at Lakeside in 2022.”
District Attorney Summer Stefan, who was selected to prosecute San Diego County atrocities, is looking to see what other charges could be brought against “other people involved” in the attack.
During a meeting of the Lakeside community center on Tuesday, April 19, more than 100 activists and community members challenged the sheriff’s office to be vigilant in administering justice against the high school student, NBC San Diego reported.
When Ray opened the floor for questions: “It was almost murder!” Was announced by the audience.
Judy Jensven, a resident of Lakeside, said: “Let’s chase the parents of this punk. They are learning about this hatred somewhere. ”
Detectives said they were investigating whether the boy’s father was in the crowd shouting humiliating insults and whether he was guilty of the crime.
“It’s a dangerous setting [expletive] a precedent if you do not arrest the father, “said one man.
Another man signed, saying, “He must be in jail while you investigate.”
Lisa Weinreb, chief deputy of the juvenile branch of the district attorney’s office who attended the community interview, called for her father’s arrest: “While this is horrific, horrific behavior, I can’t prosecute a parent for being ready.”
“We are dictated by the law and the law does not allow anyone and explicitly says that if they stood as a bystander and did nothing more, then this is not a crime.
Prosecutors added: “Many aspects of this incident are appalling, and as our investigation progresses, we will be confident that we will hold anyone accountable for the evidence that he committed a crime.
Activists believe the case is colored by the county’s history of racism.
Daniel Wilkerson of the Eastern District BIPOC coalition said: “It’s a joke that East County is racist.”
“You’ve heard Clanti, you’ve heard White Hills, all the things that people put a layer of humor on, but this racism is real and alive, and we had a victim this week,” Wilkerson said.
Stefan acknowledged the validity of Wilkerson’s statement, saying that there was a “disturbing increase in hate crime in her office, with the largest number being committed against black people.” She also presented shocking facts: her office has filed 21 hate crimes cases in 2020 and 30 in 2022.
The two-hour conversation ended with a promise to address major problems of racially motivated violence in the coming months, the KPBS reported.
Some in the audience, such as San Diego activist Tasha Williamson, thought the promise was empty.
“I feel it’s down,” she said after the meeting. “This is a new lieutenant who has no idea what happened or may have an idea, but he is not sure of the severity.
A spokesman for the residential complex where the stabbing took place issued a statement on the violence, saying: “We have a zero-tolerance policy of violence of all kinds and we strongly oppose all forms of hatred. Our top priority is the safety and well-being of our community, and we are actively supporting the ongoing investigation. “
The teenager was ordered to stay away from the victim, her mother and sister and must return to court on June 6.
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