Police: Man yelled racial slurs before machete attack

A California man is facing hate crime and other charges after police say he stabbed a black man with a machete after yelling racial slurs.

Police in Clearlake, about 80 miles north of San Francisco, say they responded to an apartment complex at about 8:15 p.m. Saturday after people reported someone yelling racial slurs in the parking lot and later attacking the victim with the knife.

Police say that Anthony Hammond continued yelling racial slurs at the victim, Hammond struck the victim on the shoulder with the machete, causing serious bodily injury

Police say the 34-year-old suspect  went back into his apartment and an hours-long standoff began. At one point police looking into the apartment window say Hammond tried to hide in his refrigerator.  He eventually came out of the apartment and was arrested.

During transport to the Lake County Jail, Hammond threatened to kill the transporting officer and his family upon his release from jail.

Hammond was booked into the Lake County Jail on charges of aggravated mayhem, battery with serious bodily injury, assault with a deadly weapon, felony resisting executive officer, hate crime, battery on a person, and two outside agency felony arrest warrants. He's being held on more than $1 million bond.

The victim was transported by paramedics from Lake County Fire and Protection District Station 70, to Adventist Health Hospital Clearlake.  His condition was unknown and his name was not being released.

 

With the Associated Press