A man embroiled in a vicious stabbing on West Campus near the University of Texas at Austin, which left a 23-year-old Palestinian American with serious injuries, has been indicted, though not for a hate crime, said officials. Bert James Baker, 36, was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for a February attack following a "free Palestine" rally, but a grand jury declined to categorize the incident as a hate crime, an outcome that has stirred discontent among community members seeking justice.
Despite the Austin Police Department's assessment, which labeled the violence against the visitor from North Texas a hate crime, the Travis County District Attorney's Office confirmed that the grand jury did not recognize bias or prejudice in selecting the victim based on race, national origin, ancestry or religion, KXAN reported. The altercation leading up to the stabbing involved Baker allegedly using racial slurs, and the assault happened shortly after the victim attended a demonstration advocating for peace in Gaza, with the victim’s father recounting to KXAN the ordeal that left his son hospitalized with stab wounds and a broken rib.
While Baker’s indictment on aggravated assault charges stands, the DA's office, through District Attorney José Garza, expressed an unwavering commitment to prosecuting hate crimes, saying, "Our office takes the hate crime referrals we receive from our law enforcement partners incredibly seriously," as obtained by KVUE. In the wake of the grand jury's decision, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) voiced concern, reflecting a broader apprehension towards what is perceived as a rise in hate crimes nationwide.
In the unfolding of the nightmarish encounter, witnesses said Baker opened the doors of a pickup truck, pulled out Zacharia Doar, the victim, and assaulted him – this following Baker's alleged use of the N-word and other obscenities, all of which was detailed by Mustafaa Carroll, the interim executive director for the Texas chapter of CAIR, in a statement released to KVUE. The suspect subsequently fell to the ground after the brawl only to rise again, knife in hand, whereupon he inflicted grievous injuries upon Doar, who believes the presence of a Palestinian scarf likely marked them as a target, saying, "He knew what he was doing; he knew what his intentions were when he pulled out that knife," as he conveyed to KVUE.
Baker, who is currently in jail on a $100,000 bond, is awaiting prosecution in the 331st Judicial Court for Travis County, as the University of Texas Police clarified that neither the suspect nor the victim was affiliated with UT.
