Federal hate crime charges introduced against man accused of plotting racist taking pictures in Georgia

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

19 May 2022, 13:58

• 3 min read

Hate crime charges have been introduced against a person accused of planning to fatally shoot clients and staff of two Jonesboro, Georgia, convenience shops.

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

The indictment alleges that Foxworth, who's white, was motivated to shoot into the stores due to the perceived race, shade or national origin of the folks contained in the shops.

“No particular person needs to be afraid to buy or go to work in our group. Nor should people have to fret that they could be violently attacked due to the colour of their pores and skin,” U.S. Attorney Ryan Okay. 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 cause bodily damage, or try to take action using a dangerous weapon because of the sufferer’s precise or perceived race, color, faith or nationwide origin.

Clayton County is a predominantly Black neighborhood, making up 72.8% of the inhabitants, in accordance with the U.S. Census Bureau.

The charges towards 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 individuals, injuring three others, in what authorities have described as a racially motivated rampage.

“Hate-fueled violence has no place in a civilized society,” Assistant Lawyer Common Kristen Clarke of the Justice Division’s Civil Rights Division mentioned. “Thankfully nobody was injured by the conduct alleged in this case, but the Justice Division is committed to using all the tools in our regulation enforcement arsenal to prosecute allegations of hate crimes.”

U.S. Assistant Attorney Basic for the Civil Rights Division Kristen Clarke speaks during a information convention at the Division of Justice, Aug. 5, 2021, in Washington, D.C.

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

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

ABC News' Luke Barr contributed to this report.