Federal hate crime fees introduced against man accused of plotting racist shooting in Georgia

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

19 Might 2022, 13:58

• 3 min read

Hate crime expenses have been introduced in opposition to a man accused of planning to fatally shoot prospects and employees of two Jonesboro, Georgia, convenience shops.

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

The indictment alleges that Foxworth, who is white, was motivated to shoot into the shops due to the perceived race, colour or nationwide origin of the individuals inside the stores.

“No individual must be afraid to buy or go to work in our group. Nor should people have to worry that they could be violently attacked because of the color of their skin,” U.S. Lawyer Ryan K. 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 but entered a plea.

He is 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 sufferer’s actual or perceived race, colour, religion or nationwide origin.

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

The charges against 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 Lawyer General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said. “Thankfully nobody was injured by the conduct alleged on this case, but the Justice Department is committed to utilizing all of 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 news convention at the Department of Justice, Aug. 5, 2021, in Washington, D.C.

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

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

ABC News' Luke Barr contributed to this report.