KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A man pleaded guilty on Thursday for making racially motivated threats, deemed a hate crime, against a Black juvenile male in Paola, Kansas.
Colton Donner, 27, was first charged for the incident in December 2020.
Court documents said that in September 2019, Donner told the juvenile that Paola was a "white town." He then proceeded to threaten the victim with a knife while yelling racial slurs.
Donner is facing up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the civil rights offense.
“Using racially motivated threats of violence to drive someone out of their home or community is a deplorable crime, and the Justice Department stands ready to use our nation’s hate crimes laws to hold perpetrators accountable,” Kristen Clarke, assistant attorney general for the Department’s Civil Rights Division, said. “Racially motivated hate crimes have no place in our society today. All people deserve to feel safe and secure living in their communities, regardless of race, color or national origin.”
A sentencing date for Donner was not immediately announced.
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