46° and Clear
Image
(Shutterstock)
SHORELINE, WA — A Shoreline woman was charged with a hate crime Thursday, accused of hurling anti-Asian slurs and threatening her neighbor earlier in the week, according to King County prosecutors. The latest case is the 11th hate crime charge filed in King County in 2021 and the fourth targeting Asian-Americans and Pacific Islanders. Hate crimes and acts of violence against Asian Americans are on the rise in Washington and across the nation.
In court filings, prosecutors identified the defendant as Jan Myers, 72, of Shoreline. She is charged with one count of malicious harassment, a class C felony.
According to probable cause documents, deputies were called to a home on North 201st Street on Monday after a Vietnamese-American woman reported her neighbor yelled slurs and told her "You're not gonna live very long."
The victim told deputies she did not know Myers well but had been subjected to racial slurs and inappropriate behavior from her neighbor for years. On Monday, she said the behavior escalated to threats, and she began to fear for her safety, according to investigators.
The woman told deputies that Myers was driving her car up and down the road, yelling at her to come out and using anti-Asian slurs. Investigators said the victim shared several cell phone videos of the encounter and previous run-ins.
When deputies visited Myers' house, investigators said she allowed them inside and agreed to answer questions in a recorded interview. Myers denied threatening her neighbor, but deputies said that was inconsistent with what the videos showed.
During a first court appearance Tuesday, prosecutors asked a judge to set Myers' bail at $15,000, citing the victim's fear and potential danger to the community. The judge released her on personal recognizance. An arraignment hearing, where Myers is likely to enter a plea, is scheduled for April 22.
Related: Anti-Asian Hate Crimes On The Rise In Washington
King County Prosecuting Attorney Dan Satterberg is seeking funding to create a hate crimes task force staffed by four deputy attorneys, citing the increase in hate crime reports in recent years, including 59 cases filed in 2020.
