A 12-year-old Connecticut girl accused of assaulting two of her Muslim classmates earlier this month has been charged with a hate crime, authorities announced.
The pre-teen, who was not identified, is facing counts of first- and second-degree intimidation based on bigotry and bias, according to a joint statement from Waterbury Mayor Paul Pernerewski, Jr., the Waterbury Police Department and the Waterbury Department of Education.
A second unidentified student was also referred to a youth diversionary program instead of being arrested.
The altercation unfolded on March 3 at Wallace Middle School, police said. It involved four seventh-grade girls ranging from 11 to 13 years old, including twins who regularly wear hijabs, according to the Connecticut chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
They said the girls were targeted because of their Muslim beliefs, and sustained “minor injuries” during the scuffle, per the press release. The twins did not require medical attention at the time, authorities noted.
Following an investigation, police determined “the altercation was motivated by religion and/or ethnicity meeting the legal definition of a hate crime.” School officials also labeled it “an incident of bullying,” according to the press release.
“The students who instigated the incident will be properly disciplined by the school district and face appropriate consequences in the judicial system,” Pernerewski said. He noted the altercation was “an isolated incident” and not “part of a widespread problem.”
CAIR in a statement took issue with mayor’s assessment, but did praise law enforcement for making an arrest in the case.
“We vehemently disagree with Waterbury’s assessment that this was an isolated case,” Farhan Memon, chairman of CAIR-CT, told the Connecticut Insider. “We’ve heard from other parents of Muslim students that their kids have been harassed because of their religion. This result should send a message that bias-motivated actions will not be tolerated in our schools.”
If convicted of a the first-degree felony, the 12-year-old suspect faces up to 10 years in prison. The second-degree charge can come with a sentence of up to five years and a fine of $5,000.