Last week The Root reported that Nicole Poole Franklin, a 42-year-old Des Moines woman, told the Clive Police Department she ran over a 14-year-old girl because the girl “was a Mexican.” Now police have charged Franklin with attempted murder again—this time for hitting a 12-year-old black boy with her vehicle, an incident police say took place on the same day, Dec. 9.
Des Moines Police Sgt. Paul Parizek said footage taken of the incident clearly shows Franklin intentionally hitting the boy just one hour before she hit the girl, CNN reports.
The boy was walking in a Des Moines apartment parking lot when an SUV “gunned its engine,” ran over his leg and sped away, a witness told police.
Thankfully, both victims are well. The boy didn’t sustain any major injuries, according to police, and the girl was hospitalized for one week, but has since returned to school.
But there’s more: about an hour after the second hit-and-run, Franklin reportedly stole a few items from a convenience store and hurled racial insults at the clerk when questioned about stealing. Once at the scene, police charged her with theft, assault and intoxication. The police say Franklin admitted to taking meth earlier in the day.
“Looking at the three incidents collectively, the hate-filled motivation is apparent,” Parizek told CNN in an email. Local residents are asking police to add hate crime charges against Franklin in addition to the attempted murder charges.
The Clive Police Department issued this statement:
“... there is no place in our community (or any other) for this kind of hatred and violence. We are committed to supporting the victim and his family and working diligently with them to seek justice.”
He’s right. Justice is always in order.