A San Francisco Superior Court Judge has dismissed the felony hate crime charges brought against two men accused of assaulting a 20-year-old transgender woman at the 16th and Mission BART Plaza back in April. The witness who told reporters she heard one of the fleeing assailants say, "Oh, I hate men dressed up as women", delivered the same testimony before the court during a preliminary hearing yesterday, but Judge Bruce Chan ruled that two suspects will only stand trial for assault, second-degree robbery and violating the victim's civil rights reports KTVU. District Attorney Gascón, who disagreed with the judge's ruling, also gathered reporters for a brief conference this morning.
According to the Mercury News, Judge Chan's ruling dropped the hate crime charges because the two suspects attacked Mia to steal her smartphone, not because of her gender identity. An assistant District Attorney pointed out the two men's comments indicate they knew Mia was a transgender woman and DA Gascón intends to file the hate crime charges again when the case goes to trial before a different judge.
