Man who punched 5-year-old and father charged with hate crime, police say – The Washington Post
Dylan J. Kesterson, 34, was arrested shortly after allegedly attacking a father and his daughter. He punched the father in the head and the daughter in the head several times.
The family was traumatized after their daughter was attacked in Portland. City Commissioner Carmen Rubio has issued a public apology over the incident.
Kesterson has been charged with harassment, assault and bias crime after he attacked the duo on a bicycle path in Portland, Ore. The father was treated at a hospital, but the girl did not sustain any injuries.
The father that was assaulted told KGW that a suspect yelled anti-Asian slurs and hit him in the head “more than 50 times”.
Oregon law defines a bias crime as a crime committed because of a person’s perception of another person’s race.
Portland City Commissioner Mingus Mapps called the incident “horrific” and “unacceptable”, and Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler said he would not tolerate this kind of behavior in his community.
Kesterson did not appear in court Tuesday, but pleaded not guilty to charges of assault and harassment.
Hate crimes against Asian Americans have been on the rise in the United States since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. In March, a 67-year-old Asian woman in New York was punched in the head and face more than 125 times, stomped and spit on.
For more information on this story, check out the news outlets listed below.
- Man who punched 5-year-old and father charged with hate crime, police say The Washington Post
- Portland man accused of punching 5-year-old girl because he thought she was Japanese pleads not guilty Yahoo News
- Father, Daughter Attacked In Alleged Anti-Asian Biased Crime In Portland NBC News
- Bias crime suspect fails to appear in Multnomah County court, warrant issued for arrest Fox 12 Oregon
- Portland Man Accused of Racist Attack on Family Doesn’t Show Up to Court Hearing Willamette Week
- View Full Coverage on Google News