Teenagers who dressed up as members of KKK in halloween slapped with hate crime charges after attacking a black child with tasers

 

White teenagers who dressed up as members of KKK in halloween slapped with hate crime charges after attacking a black child with tasers

By Edward Era Barbacena

Two Texas WHITE teens are facing hate crime charges after they allegedly dressed as Ku Klux Klan members for Halloween — then attacked at least one Black child with a Taser.

Noel Garcia Jr. and Rance Bolcik, both 17, were indicted Thursday by a grand jury in Refugio County, on third-degree felony charges of engaging in organized criminal activity and tampering with evidence, in addition to hate crime enhancements, according to Corpus Christi's Channel 6.

The indictment alleges that Garcia Jr. and Bolcik, along with an unnamed minor female, committed assault causing bodily injury to a juvenile, before altering, destroying or concealing clothing.

Michael Manning, an attorney for the victim, has described the attack — which occurred on Oct. 31 in Woodsboro — as a "heinous, inexcusable, disgusting tasing of a Black teenager by young men dressed as members of the Ku Klux Klan or KKK."

Manning said previously that he believes a second, even younger victim was also "terrorized" by the teens. He also criticized the school district for allegedly allowing the suspects to play in a football game the weekend after the attack.

The Woodsboro school district issued a statement at the time saying officials could not discipline the suspects because the conduct occurred off campus.

The president of the local NAACP told Channel 6 he had spoken to school officials in the wake of Thursday's indictment, and a news conference is planned for Friday.

Garcia Jr. and Bolcik reportedly were arrested at Woodsboro High School on Thursday about an hour after the indictment was handed down.