Utah Man Charged With Hate Crime for Spitting on Muslim Mom and Son
A 61-year-old Utah man was slapped with a hate crime charge on Friday for allegedly spitting on, and yelling at, a mother dressed in traditional Muslim clothing and her young son. Court documents say that the victim told officials that Robert Wolcott confronted her and her 7-year-old son at a Utah Transit Authority TRAX stop and proceeded to spit at them and yell, “go back to your country.” Authorities say they found the man with signs of intoxication, including slurred speech and poor balance, according to The Salt Lake Tribune. Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill charged Wolcott with two misdemeanors that both contained a victim-targeting penalty since “he allegedly selected the victims based on his belief they were not from the United States,” according to FOX13. In a statement, Gill said, “These alleged crimes not only do harm to the victims but also to our entire community.” U.S. officials have reported a rise in threats and hate crimes against Jewish, Muslim, and Arab communities, including the fatal stabbing of a 6-year-old Palestinian boy allegedly by his family’s landlord in Illinois.
