Charges laid after woman bitten in hate-motivated attack in Calgary

Charges have been laid after a woman was bitten in what police believe was a hate-motivated attack in Calgary.

According to Calgary police, back in January, a woman was waiting at a bus shelter on 17th Avenue SW, when a man approached her and slapped her phone out of her hands. The man then proceeded to bite the woman on her hand while yelling racist slurs at her.

Police say the man continued to yell and threaten the woman until three bystanders intervened and assisted the woman to safety before calling the police. Police arrived on the scene and brought a man into custody.

Now, Calgary police have charged Michael Grant Williams in connection with this incident. He has been charged with one count each of assault and failure to comply with a release order. Police are treating this as a hate-motivated attack after consulting with the Calgary hate crimes unit.

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In a release, Constable Matt Messenger from the Hate Crimes Prevention Unit said this type of behaviour cannot happen in our city.

“Everyone has the right to feel safe in their community. There is no place for hate in our city and we want to thank the bystanders for coming to the aid of the victim,” Messenger said.

“We know that hate-motivated incidents are unfortunately under-reported and want to remind all Calgarians to report these incidents so they can be thoroughly investigated and those responsible can be held accountable.”

Calgary police say hate-motivated crimes are recognizable crimes, like assault, theft, vandalism, or any other crime, where the offender was motivated by bias, prejudice, or hate based on one of nine personal characteristics of the victim.

A hate motivation does not result in any additional charges, but any evidence of it is considered by the courts after a person is found guilty of the connected crime. If the judge decides during sentencing that hate was a motivation for the offence, it is an aggravating factor that can add to the convicted person’s sentence.

Police encourage anyone who has been the target of ill-treatment because of hate to report it. Even if the incident is not criminal, we can use the information to track trends and sometimes even identify suspects in other investigations. Incidents can be reported by calling 403-266-1234 or visiting stophateab.ca.