Share this @internewscast.com

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A Des Moines woman has pleaded guilty to federal hate crimes for intentionally driving her SUV into two children in 2019 because she said she thought one was Mexican and the other was a member of the Islamic State group.

Nicole Poole Franklin, 43, entered the pleas Wednesday in a Des Moines federal court to two counts of violating the U.S. Hate Crime Act for trying to kill the children in separate attacks because of their races. She pleaded guilty Monday to two state counts of attempted murder in the same Dec. 9, 2019, attacks, the Des Moines Register reported.

Prosecutors said Franklin intentionally jumped a curb in Des Moines that afternoon and struck a Black 12-year-old boy, injuring one of his legs. During her hearing Wednesday, Poole said she thought the boy was of Middle Eastern descent and was a member of IS.

Minutes later, Franklin ran down a 14-year-old Latina girl on a sidewalk, leaving her with injuries for which she was hospitalized for two days. Police said Franklin told them she hit the girl because “she is Mexican.” About an hour later, Franklin was arrested at a local gas station, where officers say she had thrown items at a clerk while yelling racial slurs at him and other customers.

Franklin has said she is schizophrenic and has post-traumatic stress disorder. Last year, a judge ruled that she wasn’t mentally competent to stand trial, but she was later restored to mental competency and ordered to face trial.

The federal counts carry a possible life prison sentence, but prosecutors recommended that Franklin be sentenced to 27 years behind bars and that her federal sentence be served at the same time as her state sentence. On the state counts, Franklin faces up to 25 years on each attempted murder count. It wasn’t clear if other state counts, including hate crimes, would be dropped as part as her guilty plea in state court, the Register reported.

Source: huffpost

Share this @internewscast.com
You May Also Like

Tragic Hit-and-Run at Fireworks Show Claims Life of 3-Year-Old Boy

Background: The location of the accident at Lyndon Street and Merriman Road…

‘Arson Attack and Protest in Melbourne Condemned by Jewish Leaders as ‘Appalling Crimes”

Leaders of the Jewish community have called for action after separate attacks…

Mothers Call for Halt on Enforcement of Trump’s Birthright Citizenship Order

President Donald Trump addresses a joint press conference with Elon Musk in…

Two Teens Face Charges Following Alleged Joyride Across Four Sydney Suburbs

Two teenagers have been charged after a police pursuit through Sydney‘s west.…

NSW Police Officer Assaulted During Welfare Check

A man is in custody after two female police officers were allegedly…

Deputies Report Woman Accused of Killing Roommate and Attempting to Poison Neighbors

Context: Kore Bommeli Adams in a court appearance in Dane County, Wisconsin…

Prisoner Accused of Fatally Shooting Guard with Guard’s Gun at Clinic

Left: Kelvin Simmons (Buncombe County Sheriff”s Office) Right: Francisco Flattes (Cherokee County…

Elderly Florida Woman, 80, Accused of Slapping Fellow Driver

Inset: Linda Frenier (Orange County Jail). Background: A Walmart in Apopka, Fla.…

Teen Tried as Adult in Failed Marijuana Robbery That Ended in Murder

A 16-year-old boy from Indiana is facing adult charges of murder following…

Mother Sentenced to 20 Years for Mistreating Her Toddlers

Samantha Woods (Jackson County Sheriff”s Office). An Alabama woman will spend just…

Gainesville Resident Accused of Assaulting 14-Year-Old Runaway

Staff report GAINESVILLE, Fla. – A 26-year-old named McNish Mathis Tuzon Hampton…

Intoxicated Driver in Michigan Hits Family Departing Festival, Resulting in the Death of a 3-Year-Old and Injuries to Twin Sister: Police Report

A woman from Michigan, who was driving on a suspended license, reportedly…