Jury Convicts Iowa Man of Racially Motivated Hate Crime for Attacking an African-American Man

A man who stomped on and kicked the head of an African-American man because of the victim’s race was convicted by a jury today after a three-day trial in the Northern District of Iowa.

Randy Metcalf, 40, of Dubuque, Iowa, was convicted of one count of committing a federal hate crime.  The verdict was returned this afternoon following about three hours of jury deliberations.

The evidence at trial showed that on Jan. 12, 2015, Metcalf assaulted an African-American male at the Northside Bar in Dubuque by stomping on and kicking his head as the victim lay barely conscious on the floor of the bar.  Metcalf assaulted the victim and was then pushed away from him by another person in the bar, but then returned to kick and stomp the victim in the head again.  The evidence further showed that he assaulted this man because of the victim’s race, and that Metcalf had been using racial slurs in reference to the man over the course of the night prior to the assault.  Metcalf also displayed a swastika tattoo to other people who were in the bar prior to the assault and bragged about having burned crosses.

“Hate violence violates the fundamental promise of equal protection for all that defines a free and tolerant society,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.  “As this conviction shows, the Department of Justice will continue to aggressively prosecute hate crimes to ensure that we safeguard the rights of victims and hold perpetrators accountable.”

“Racially motivated acts of violence have no place in our state or country,” said U.S. Attorney Kevin W. Techau of the Northern District of Iowa.  “This office is committed to vigorously prosecuting federal laws prohibiting violent acts of hate and protecting the civil rights of the citizens of Iowa.”

Sentencing before Chief U.S. District Judge Linda R. Reade of the Northern District of Iowa will be scheduled at a later date.  Metcalf faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, a $100 special assessment and three years of supervised release following any imprisonment.  He remains in custody of the U.S. Marshals pending sentencing. 

The case was investigated by the Dubuque Police Department and the FBI.  The case is being jointly prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Morfitt of the Northern District of Iowa and Trial Attorney Christopher Perras of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section.