The Brief
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A woman was seen on video repeatedly using N— word during a dispute with a Black woman in Pinole.
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Officers told KTVU that they responded to the scene and interviewed both women.
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The Pinole Police Department has classified the incident as a hate crime and the investigation is ongoing.
PINOLE, Calif, – A video of a woman in a car repeatedly using the N— word in Pinole has gone viral.
In between the slurs, the woman added an insult, referring to the other woman’s “fake a— eyelashes.”
The recorded interaction ends with the suspect yelling, “Get outta my face, you f— n— .”
The argument between the two women happened in a public parking lot in downtown Pinole on Sunday afternoon.
The woman using the slurs could not be reached for comment, and she has taken down some of her social media.
The woman on the receiving end of the racist rant told KTVU she was targeted for no apparent reason.
“It’s quite unfortunate the verbiage she was using. It’s unacceptable,” said the woman, who didn’t want to be identified. “I don’t understand why she was using it towards anybody in public at all. She’s obviously not supposed to be using that type of vulgar language.”
Pinole police officers responded to the scene and spoke to both women.
Hate crime investigation
What they’re saying
“Due to the nature of the verbal exchange between the involved parties, the incident has been classified as a hate incident and is currently under investigation by the department’s criminal investigation bureau,” the Pinole Police Department.
Felicia Carr of Fairfield reposted the video on her social media and helped identify the woman using the slurs.
“It’s really disheartening. We’re living in some very trying times,” Carr said. “With the tensions that’s going on and racism at an all-time high right now, it was just so much racism and blatant disrespect, it was sad to see.”
On Wednesday, KTVU spoke to the mother of the woman now under investigation. She did not want to go on camera but said she was sad and had been crying constantly after learning about the video a day earlier.
KTVU has learned the woman accused of using racial slurs has a pending criminal case, charged with repeatedly stealing from Ulta Beauty in Concord.
The manager of a nearby restaurant told KTVU the woman had been a customer, laughing by herself. He said she was no longer welcome there.
What we don’t know
It’s not unclear what led up to the disagreement caught on video.
‘It does not matter’
What they’re saying
“It does not matter. It does not matter at all,” Carr said. “No matter what the context, it was out of line. It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter what transpired before. She was out of line.”
Pinole Mayor Cameron Sasai said, “Seeing the footage, I’m disturbed, I’m outrage. The use of racial slurs, everything from racist anti-Black rhetoric, is not welcome anywhere, especially in the city of Pinole.”
Carr said, “It’s not a nice word to use, and it should never be used. She should definitely be educated on it.”
Henry Lee is a KTVU crime reporter. E-mail Henry at Henry.Lee@fox.com and follow him on Twitter @henrykleeKTVU and www.facebook.com/henrykleefan
The Source
Interviews, Contra Costa County court records