A 24-year-old white man has been arrested in connection with the harassment of a Black family in suburban Detroit who were the target of a series of attacks on their home over three nights.
Eddie and Candace Hall, who display a large Black Lives Matter sign in their Warren, Michigan, home’s front window, were targeted in early September by a harassment campaign that included shots fired into their house, slashed tires, and racial slurs written on their property.
The unnamed suspect in the case was arrested on Tuesday, Sept. 29. The following day authorities announced he faces eight felony charges, including three counts of ethnic intimidation. Warren Police Commissioner Bill Dwyer that the suspect confessed to the hate crimes perpetrated at the Halls’ home.
“In this city, we do not tolerate any type of crime, but particularly racist terrorism,” Mayor James Fouts told reporters at news conference on Wednesday. “And make no mistake about it, this was a racist terrorist.”
According to Dwyer, the suspect, who was due to be arraigned on Thursday, Oct. 1, also could face federal charges. He indicated that the Warren Police Department has been working with the FBI throughout the process, and said the case was taken seriously from the start.
“This is something that is not tolerated in Warren and it was the No. 1 priority with the Warren Police Department from the day that hate crime took place,” he told the Detroit Free Press this week. “We used just as much resources as we would in a homicide investigation.”
The attacks occurred the nights of Sept. 7-9 at the Halls home, and resulted in three of their vehicles being damaged, a rock hurled through their front window and a bullet striking their living room couch. Six shell casings were also found at the home.
Messages of racial threats and intimidation also were written on their cars, which included “terrorist black lives matter” and “not welcome” with a swastika.
Candace Hall noted that they might have been the focus of such violence due to a Black Lives Matter sign that sits in their window, and she believes the attacks had racial intent.
However, the family has told the Free Press that they are not taking down the sign, and will not be moving to another location.
Candace Hall made a Facebook post on Tuesday evening in which she seemed to be elated about the news in the case, writing “Thank you Jesus! Please let them have the right person!”
She added to The Detroit News, “Just to know that they have someone in custody, I think I’ll be able to sleep tonight without waking up every 15 minutes or so and constantly checking my ring security system to see if someone is coming.”
