A suspect in the stabbing of a trans woman in November has been charged with hate crimes in New York, prosecutors announced last week.Alshon Williams, 49, has been charged with second-degree assault as a hate crime, first-degree attempted assault as a hate crime, second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, and second-degree menacing as a hate crime.Williams allegedly misgendered the victim and shouted antigay slurs during the attack.“As alleged, this defendant hurled hateful words and slurs before this violent attack.
It is a miracle that the victim was not severely injured – or even killed – and we wish her a speedy recovery,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L.
Bragg, Jr. said in a statement.Related: How Anti-Trans Rhetoric Drives ViolenceThe district attorney’s office said that just after midnight on November 1, 2022, Williams allegedly targeted the 36-year-old victim and her friend in front of an apartment building in Harlem.
Williams told them to be quiet since it was so late, according to officials.The suspect then called the victim slurs before he took a sharp object and stabbed her in the face multiple times that caused cuts above her right eye, prosecutors said.Williams allegedly shot several shots at the victim before getting on a moped and driving off.