Charges have been filed against a San Francisco man accused of stabbing two elderly Asian women at a muni bus stop Tuesday.
Patrick Thompson, 54, is facing two counts of attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon and elder abuse charges for allegedly stabbing an 85-year-old and 65-year-old woman.
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But the DA said he isn’t filing hate crime charges -- for now.
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On Wednesday night, San Francisco Police Chief Bill Scott told police commissioners what they’ve determined so far.
“There is no indication at this point that there was any kind of hate prejudice. We do think at this point it is random but there is more investigation to be done so I don’t want to close that door,” he said.
Thompson has a long criminal record. In 2017, he was charged with assault with a deadly weapon, but he was sent to a state hospital after being found not competent to stand trial. When he was remanded back to court he was ultimately sent to a diversion program rather than prison.
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The case is the latest in a series of attacks on members of the Bay Area’s Asian and Pacific Islander community and while this isn’t being called a hate crime now, others have been, and on Thursday, the FBI announced a new plan for combating hate crimes.
“With the recent and very sharp rise in hate incidents, hate speech and hate crimes within the Asian American Pacific Islander community, we have more agents, more analysts and community outreach method,” said Craig Fair, special agent in charge of San Francisco FBI.
More investigative resources will help to build trust, address underreporting and encourage people to report to the FBI.
