A Kansas man who threatened a Black man with a knife and told him he was in a “White town” was on Wednesday sentenced to two years and three months in federal prison, the Justice Department announced, according to NBC News.
In February, Face2Face Africa reported Colton Donner admitted to threatening the Black man with a knife because of his race. He also admitted to confronting him with the intention of intimidating and interfering with his right to fair housing. The incident happened in a Paola neighborhood on September 11, 2019.
Donner, 27, is said to have confronted the Black victim after he spotted him walking on a sidewalk in a neighborhood. The accused, who was driving at the time, allegedly got out of the car and walked toward the Black man while brandishing a knife. Donner also hurled racial slurs at the victim and told him Paola was a “white town.”
It wasn’t established if the Black man was house hunting when Donner confronted him. The investigation into the incident was conducted by the Paola Police Department and the FBI’s Kansas City Field Office.
“Racially-motivated threats and violence have no place in our society today,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke in a statement.
“This sentence should send a strong message to perpetrators of violent hate-fueled acts that they will be held accountable for their crimes,” Clarke added. “Everyone deserves to feel safe and secure living in their communities, without being subject to racially-motivated crimes seeking to drive them from their homes or neighborhoods.”
Besides the prison sentence, Donner was also sentenced to 18 months of supervised release.
“All Americans have the freedom to decide where they want to live, and to do so without fear of being threatened because of their race,” U.S. Attorney Duston Slinkard for the District of Kansas said.
“Hopefully this prison sentence will deter those who would commit acts of racial discrimination and violence by illustrating the Justice Department’s steadfast resolve to prosecute these crimes,” Slinkard added.
