4 charged with hate crime in Houston bus stop beating
A federal grand jury has indicted four white men in a racially motivated attack on an African-American last summer at a bus stop, the first prosecution in the Houston region under a tough hate crime law, FBI officials said Thursday.
Stephen Morris, special agent-in-charge of the Houston FBI office, said the federal law gives investigators and prosecutors expanded authority to go after hate crimes. With a maximum 10-year prison term, the penalties are more severe than state law.
Charged Wednesday with federal crimes are Charles Cannon, 26; Michael McLaughlin, 40; Brian Kerstetter, 32; and Joseph Staggs, 49. All four were already in Harris County jail on misdemeanor assault charges stemming from the attack.
They are accused of a viciously assaulting Houston resident Yondell Johnson, 29, who was waiting for a bus when they allegedly approached him and asked if he had the time. They quickly began to use racial epithets and pummelled him as he lay on the ground in downtown Houston, police said. They are accused of using the N-word as they beat Johnson.
more:http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/4-charged-with-hate-crime-in-Houston-bus-stop-2633283.php
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