WTOL.com - Toledo's News Leader | Was It a Hate Crime? Family Says Yes, Police Say No

Was It a Hate Crime? Family Says Yes, Police Say No

NORTH BALTIMORE -- 16-year-old Tori Hamilton is recovering at home after he was hit by a car Monday night.  His family says the incident was no accident -- it was a hate crime, but the police chief in their small town doesn't agree.

Hamilton says he was in front of his house Monday when the car with three people inside it hut him.  One of the passengers was a high school classmate.  "They backed up just enough to get some speed.  Full speed, hit him, and he flew quite a distance into the air," said Heather Snyder, who saw it happen.  "Rolled over, and they sped off.  He was laying there, having convulsions."

Tori stopped breathing and had to be flown to the hospital by air ambulance.  He's black, and he's gay, and he claims what happened Monday was no accident, that it was a hate crime.  "I've been called racial things as long as I've been here. But I'm not going to fight anyone for what they say out of their mouth. You have to put your hand on me in order for me to fight," said Tori.

"He's been called 'reggin" which is the 'N' word spelled backwards," said Contessa Hamilton, Tori's mother.  "He was jumped coming home from school one day."  Contessa says this has been ongoing since her family first moved from Detroit to North Baltimore a year ago.

"It was shocking, because it didn't seem real," said Penny Rayle, a sophomore at North Baltimore High School, and one of Tori's classmates.  "This actually happened to somebody, and it's saddening to see."  Rayle says she thinks it was a hate crime.

Another classmate, Valerie Stearns, says she can't believe something like this happened to Tori.  "I'm so amazed, because he's so kind," said Stearns.  "He always makes you smile."

North Baltimore Police Chief Gerald Perry says the incident on Monday didn't fit the definition of a hate crime, and police haven't made any arrests.

Lifelong North Baltimore resident Tasha Krebs says the police need to look a little deeper into the case.  "This town has been known for not liking black people.  Everybody used to say 'N.B.' [the initials of the town] stood for 'No Blacks,'" said Krebs.  "I think they definitely should [look into this more,] because it is definitely known a lot of people in this town are racist."

Kim Welter with the group Equality Toledo says hate crimes in general often go unreported, and as a result, can threaten an entire community.  "We know that it happens everyday and that very little is being done at this point," said Welter.  "This needs to be something that teachers and parents are reinforcing, telling kids that the slurs are inappropriate.  There should be punishments for it."

According to Equality Toledo, bullying and harassment around sexual orientation and gender identity are the second most likely reasons for a child to be bullied.

Count on News 11 to follow this story as it develops.

Posted by AEB