Federal hate crime fees announced in opposition to man accused of plotting racist taking pictures in Georgia

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

19 May 2022, 13:58

• 3 min read

Hate crime fees have been announced in opposition to a man accused of planning to fatally shoot prospects and workers of two Jonesboro, Georgia, comfort shops.

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

The indictment alleges that Foxworth, who is white, was motivated to shoot into the stores due to the perceived race, shade or nationwide origin of the people contained in the stores.

“No individual needs to be afraid to shop or go to work in our community. Nor should people have to worry that they could be violently attacked because of the colour of their pores and skin,” U.S. Attorney Ryan Ok. Buchanan stated in an announcement.

Foxworth was charged with two counts of committing a federal hate crime and discharging a firearm to commit a violent crime. He has not yet entered a plea.

He's being charged under the Matthew Shepard-James Byrd Hate Crime Prevention Act, which makes it a federal crime to willfully trigger bodily injury, or attempt to do so utilizing a harmful weapon due to the sufferer’s actual or perceived race, coloration, religion or nationwide origin.

Clayton County is a predominantly Black group, making up 72.8% of the population, in accordance with the U.S. Census Bureau.

The costs against Foxworth come within the wake of the mass shooting at a Buffalo, New York, supermarket.

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. “Fortunately nobody was injured by the conduct alleged on this case, but the Justice Division is dedicated to utilizing all of the instruments in our regulation enforcement arsenal to prosecute allegations of hate crimes.”

U.S. Assistant Lawyer Basic for the Civil Rights Division Kristen Clarke speaks throughout a news convention at the Department of Justice, Aug. 5, 2021, in Washington, D.C.

This is the first time in about eight years that hate crime prices have been filed in the Northern District of Georgia, a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Workplace told ABC Information.

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

ABC News' Luke Barr contributed to this report.