2 May Face Charges in Hate Crime

Police have arrested a teenager and are seeking a federal indictment against a 22-year-old parolee in connection with a cross-burning incident that police are calling a hate crime.

After an anti-racism march protesting an 8-foot-tall cross set ablaze on a black woman’s front lawn, police announced they had found in the suspects’ homes wood, combustible materials and writings that suggested racial hatred, Police Chief Neil Purcell said.

The boy, 16, was arrested Friday on a federal warrant and taken to Shasta County Juvenile Hall. He was later released to his family.

Christopher Dale Easley was being held at the Shasta County Jail on suspicion of violating parole. He was arrested on unrelated charges last week but will remain in jail while police seek a federal indictment against him in connection to the cross burning, Purcell said.

A federal grand jury is expected to meet this week to consider issuing an indictment.