Castro hate-crime suspect Hans Haken is due back in court today for a preliminary hearing, at which we expect to learn more about his defense in a May 16 vandalism and assault incident.

SFist was the first local news outlet to report on the May 16 incident, which began outside floral design shop Chartreuse by Roje, near the intersection of Church and Market streets. A suspect, later identified as 39-year-old Hans Haken of Oakland, allegedly got out of his white Cadillac SUV — which was emblazoned in greasepaint on its rear window with the message "Onward Christian Soldiers / Charlie Kirk Rest In Power" — and spraypainted a hateful message on the wall outside the flower shop.

Seeing this taking place, upstairs neighbor Justin Donnelly confronted Haken, who he says yelled at him and pushed him several times before getting back into his vehicle. As Donnelly began taking cellphone photos of his license plate, Haken allegedly backed the vehicle up onto the sidewalk, forcing Donnelly to jump out of the way.

Haken then allegedly got out of the vehicle again and punched Donnelly in the jaw, before recklessly fleeing the scene and crashing into a parked car with a child in it as he did so.

Photo by Justin Donnelly

He's been charged with vandalism, assault with a deadly weapon, assault with force likely to cause great bodily injury, hit-and-run, and reckless driving, with hate-crime enhancements, and he's been in custody since his mid-June arrest.

As NBC Bay Area reports, Haken was due back in court for a preliminary hearing Thursday, and afterward we should know more about his defense. We may also learn if Haken has any prior history of similar incidents.

Photo courtesy of Chartreuse by Roje

Prosecutors have already noted that Haken said an unknown person in the area threw eggs at his vehicle — likely because of the Charlie Kirk message? — which angered him and led to the vandalism. The wording of that vandalism? "Faggots = gas chambers."

Also, it stands to reason that a person is probably gunning for some sort of confrontation driving around the Castro in San Francisco with that message on their rear window, and a can of spraypaint in the car, no?

This is a developing story.

Previously: 39-Year-Old Oakland Man Charged With Hate Crimes and Assault After Castro Vandalism Incident