Federal hate crime costs announced towards man accused of plotting racist taking pictures in Georgia

The person allegedly shot into two grocery stores in Jonesboro, Georgia.

19 Might 2022, 13:58

• 3 min learn

Hate crime costs have been introduced against a man accused of planning to fatally shoot clients and workers of two Jonesboro, Georgia, comfort stores.

Larry Edward Foxworth allegedly fired a gun repeatedly into two comfort shops at 2:30 a.m. on July 30, 2021. Both shops had been open for enterprise.

The indictment alleges that Foxworth, who's white, was motivated to shoot into the stores because of the perceived race, colour or national origin of the individuals contained in the stores.

“No particular person ought to be afraid to buy or go to work in our community. Nor should folks have to worry that they might be violently attacked because of the color of their pores and skin,” U.S. Legal professional Ryan Ok. Buchanan stated in a press release.

Foxworth was charged with two counts of committing a federal hate crime and discharging a firearm to commit a violent crime. He has not yet entered a plea.

He's being charged below the Matthew Shepard-James Byrd Hate Crime Prevention Act, which makes it a federal crime to willfully trigger bodily injury, or attempt to take action using a harmful weapon due to the sufferer’s precise or perceived race, colour, faith or nationwide origin.

Clayton County is a predominantly Black community, making up 72.8% of the population, in line with the U.S. Census Bureau.

The charges against Foxworth come in the wake of the mass capturing at a Buffalo, New York, grocery store.

The 18-year-old suspect in Buffalo shot and killed 10 folks, injuring three others, in what authorities have described as a racially motivated rampage.

“Hate-fueled violence has no place in a civilized society,” Assistant Attorney Normal Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said. “Fortunately no one was injured by the conduct alleged in this case, but the Justice Division is committed to utilizing all the tools in our regulation enforcement arsenal to prosecute allegations of hate crimes.”

U.S. Assistant Lawyer Common for the Civil Rights Division Kristen Clarke speaks throughout a information convention at the Department of Justice, Aug. 5, 2021, in Washington, D.C.

That is the first time in about eight years that hate crime fees have been filed within the Northern District of Georgia, a spokesperson for the U.S. Lawyer’s Office advised ABC Information.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Clayton County Police Department.

ABC Information' Luke Barr contributed to this report.