Prosecutors pursue hate crime fees towards Florida physician

MIAMI — Florida prosecutors introduced Monday that they’re pursuing hate crime fees towards a South Florida physician accused of attacking a Hispanic man at a grocery store.

Miami-Dade State Legal professional Katherine Fernandez Rundle introduced her workplace is charging Dr. Jennifer Susan Wright, 58, with felony counts of battery with prejudice, prison mischief with prejudice and tampering with a sufferer or witness. Wright was initially arrested final month, a number of weeks after the assault was reported.

“It’s unhappy that in such a various, multi-ethnic neighborhood like Miami-Dade County, COVID precautions can set off such alleged outbursts of ethnic hate,” Fernandez Rundle mentioned in an announcement. “Hate crimes are all the time meant to demean and intimidate their meant targets.”

Whereas ready in line at a Hialeah grocery store on Jan. 20, Wright turned angered after the sufferer requested her in Spanish to maintain her distance due to COVID-19 pointers, officers mentioned. Hialeah is a closely Hispanic suburb of Miami.

Wright ignored the person, so he repeated it in English, in response to authorities. As soon as outdoors, Wright walked as much as the person within the car parking zone, and he requested her to again up, officers mentioned, including the physician then uttered racial and different insults towards him.

Based on the arrest report, Wright stabbed the sufferer’s automobile along with her keys whereas saying he wanted to return to his nation after which punched and kicked the person. Wright drove away earlier than police might reply. Officers mentioned the assault befell the day President Joe Biden took workplace.

The authorized crew for Wright launched an announcement following her arrest.

“We sit up for discrediting this ugly assault towards our consumer that’s crammed with lies and twisted info to suit another person’s political agenda,” Coral Gables lawyer Carlos F. Gonzalez mentioned within the assertion.

Wright had been an anesthesiologist at Mount Sinai Medical Middle. Hospital officers introduced after her arrest that Wright, who was contracted to work there, was now not answerable for affected person care on the Miami Seashore hospital.