Federal hate crime expenses announced towards man accused of plotting racist shooting in Georgia

The man allegedly shot into two grocery shops in Jonesboro, Georgia.

19 Could 2022, 13:58

• 3 min read

Hate crime fees have been introduced towards a man accused of planning to fatally shoot clients and workers of two Jonesboro, Georgia, convenience shops.

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

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

“No individual must be afraid to shop or go to work in our neighborhood. Nor ought to folks have to worry that they may be violently attacked because of the color of their pores and skin,” U.S. Attorney Ryan Ok. Buchanan mentioned in a statement.

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 cause bodily damage, or try to do so utilizing a harmful weapon due to the victim’s precise or perceived race, colour, religion or nationwide origin.

Clayton County is a predominantly Black community, making up 72.8% of the inhabitants, based on the U.S. Census Bureau.

The costs in opposition to Foxworth come within the wake of the mass capturing at a Buffalo, New York, grocery store.

The 18-year-old suspect in Buffalo shot and killed 10 people, 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 General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said. “Thankfully no one was injured by the conduct alleged in this case, however the Justice Division is dedicated to using all of the instruments in our regulation enforcement arsenal to prosecute allegations of hate crimes.”

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

This is the primary time in about eight years that hate crime expenses have been filed within the Northern District of Georgia, a spokesperson for the U.S. Lawyer’s Workplace informed ABC News.

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.