A recent incident in Northwest DC led to the arrest of 49-year-old Warren Welcome for an alleged hate-motivated assault. Metropolitan Police Department reports that the conflict transpired on Saturday, in the 1700 block of 17th Street when the suspect requested the victim, who was shopping at the time, to purchase an item for him.
After the victim refused, Welcome purportedly proceeded to not only spit on but also assault the individual. According to MPD, throughout the assault, Welcome made derogatory comments toward the victim, specifically targeting his ethnicity. Officers responding to the scene detained Welcome, who now faces charges for Simple Assault (Hate Bias).
This attack has prompted an investigation by the Metropolitan Police Department into whether the motivations behind the crime were rooted in hate or bias. While MPD has provisionally labeled it as such, this initial designation could shift as further investigation goes on and additional evidence comes to the fore.
The Special Liaison Branch has been tapped to aid with the ongoing investigation. However, MPD's categorization of this incident as a hate crime is not an indicator that prosecutors will assuredly follow suit in prosecuting it under hate crime statutes. In essence, the investigation is still evolving, working to completely understand the incident's context and motive.