Palo Alto woman faces hate crime charges after alleged racial attack

PALO ALTO, Calif. – A Palo Alto woman faces hate crime and battery charges after allegedly spitting on a man and yelling racial epithets, police said.

Alleged racial attack

What we know

The incident occurred Saturday around 6 p.m. at Lytton Plaza on University Avenue, where police responded to a report of a fight.

At the scene, officers found a man in his 60s who had been attacked.

Authorities said the victim was sitting in the plaza when he was approached by a woman who, without provocation, spit on him while shouting a racial epithet directed at Black people.

The man left the plaza as the suspect continued yelling.

Officers located the suspect, 50-year-old Lisa Madden, and arrested her on charges of battery and a hate crime.

Authorities said Madden continued to hurl racial epithets at the victim even in the presence of officers.

The Source

The Palo Alto Police Department