Pierce County files first hate crime charge over a white, male victim
Jul 21, 2016, 5:41 AM
"This is the first time that I can recall when a hate crime has been charged when the victim is an officer, and further the victim is white," said Pierce County Prosecutor Mark Lindquist.
A man has been charged with a hate crime in Pierce County and officials are noting that it is the first.
“This is the first time that I can recall when a hate crime has been charged when the victim is an officer, and further the victim is white,” said Pierce County Prosecutor Mark Lindquist.
Mark Kevin Tolson, 55, has been charged with felony harassment and malicious harassment.
“Malicious harassment is the hate crime statute here in Washington,” Lindquist said.
The incident began on July 16 when Tacoma police responded to a report of domestic violence in the 1600 block of East 60th Street. The victim and the suspect had fled the scene. Officers located the suspect, Tolson, who is African-American, and ordered him to the ground. Tolson ran but police were eventually able to take him into custody.
While being booked into jail, Tolson reportedly called the arresting officer a “racist white cop,” and then referenced the infamous killings of four Lakewood police officers in 2009.
“The defendant started telling the arresting officer that the four police officers murdered in Lakewood got what they deserved … the defendant said that when he got out of jail, the arresting officer was going to meet the same fate as the four Lakewood officers,” Lindquist said.
“In light of recent events, especially the murder of officers in Dallas and Baton Rouge, the Tacoma officer took these threats very seriously, and so do we,” he said. “Protecting the public also means protecting the officers who protect us. Things are edgy right now for officers on the street and I hope we are going to start to see cooler heads prevail.”
