WASHINGTON (KSNT) – A Kansas man was sentenced on Wednesday for a racially-motivated hate crime targeting an African-American man.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Colton Donner, 27, was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison and 18 months of supervised release after he threatened an unnamed black man with a knife on Sept. 11, 2019. Donner threatened the black man due to his race in order to intimidate and interfere with his right to fair housing.
Donner was driving through a residential area of Paola when he spotted a black man who was walking down the sidewalk. Donner stopped, exited the car, and approached the man with a knife. Donne proceeded to threaten the man, yelled racial slurs and told him that Paola is a “white town.”
The agencies involved in the case made the following statements in response to the sentencing:
Racially-motivated threats and violence have no place in our society today. This sentence should send a strong message to perpetrators of violent hate-fueled acts that they will be held accountable for their crimes. 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.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke
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. 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.
U.S. Attorney Duston Slinkard, District of Kansas
Every individual has the right to occupy a home free from racial discrimination, yet the defendant targeted the victim for no other reason than the victim’s race. The defendant’s actions, directly undermined the victim’s right to reside in a community in Paola, and to enjoy the protections afforded under the federal civil rights act. The FBI, along with our law enforcement partners, have no tolerance for this type of fear and intimidation and are committed to protecting residents regardless of their race, color, religion, gender, national origin or familial status.
Special Agent in Charge Charles Dayoub, FBI Kansas City Field Office
Donner was also indicted for unlawful possession of a firearm while being a convicted felon in a separate incident. He pleaded guilty on Feb. 10, 2022 for the threats he made to the black man. He was initially indicted by a federal grand jury on Nov. 24, 2020.