CITRUS COUNTY, Fla. — A Florida man charged with a federal hate crime after allegedly attacking a Black man because of his race pled guilty on Tuesday.
Robert Lashley, 52, and Roy Lamar Lashley allegedly followed the victim into the parking lot of a Family Dollar in Citrus Springs while they hurled racial slurs at him on Nov. 17, 2021.
Robert attacked the victim, striking him multiple times while both he and Roy continued to direct racial slurs during and after the incident.
The victim sustained injuries to his face and legs as well as a laceration to the inside of his mouth.
“The defendant is being held accountable for subjecting a Black man to a brutal and racially-motivated assault,” Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said. “Convictions like these make clear that the Department of Justice will continue to investigate and prosecute individuals who violently assault others because of their race. Racially-motivated hate crimes have no place in our society.”
Robert faces a maximum term of 10 years in prison, three years of mandatory supervised release and a $250,000 fine. A sentencing hearing hasn't been set yet.
Both Robert and Roy were charged in an indictment with willfully causing bodily injury to the victim because of the victim's actual and perceived race. The indictment was unsealed on June 17.
Roy's case is still ongoing.
