Woman who made anti-Asian slurs in viral videos could be charged in California
Prosecutors are considering charges for a California woman who went viral after making racist, anti-Asian remarks in multiple recorded videos shared online.
Lena Hernandez of Long Beach is accused of making racial slurs against two people and pushing and hitting another person, the Torrance Police Department said in a June 17 news release.
Investigators have submitted the allegations to the Torrance City’s Prosecutor’s office to consider charges, according to the news release. On Wednesday, police spoke to Hernandez in San Pedro about the incidents. Because they’re considered misdemeanors, Hernandez wasn’t arrested during the interview, but the reports will also be submitted to the prosecutor’s office.
In a video that went viral on Twitter, Hernandez is seen yelling at a woman in a park and telling her to “go back to whatever f—cking Asian country you belong in.”
Warning: The video below contains language some may find offensive.
“My friend was threatened in Wilson Park in Torrance, California today while she was working out in a public park by a Karen,” Twitter user rmtennell wrote. “She now does not feel safe to exercise in the park because of this. This is infuriating”
Hernandez also “threatened to have her family cause harm to the victim,” Torrance Police Department said in a June 12 news release.
The second incident, which happened the same day, also went viral online and recorded Hernandez yelling at a man in a parking lot. She calls him a “China man” after he tries to record her license plate and she also speaks to him in gibberish, accusing him of parking too close to her car.
Warning: The video below contains language some may find offensive.
“Do you know how many people can’t stand you being here?” Hernandez said, adopting an Asian accent and asking, “You understand me, China man?”
The third incident happened on Oct. 14, 2019 and Hernandez is accused of cursing at a female custodian in the bathroom of a mall, Torrance Police Department said. Another person witnessed what happened, tried to intervene, and was pushed by Hernandez to the ground. Hernandez is accused of punching the victim and leaving before police arrived.
This story was originally published June 18, 2020 at 1:13 PM with the headline "Woman who made anti-Asian slurs in viral videos could be charged in California."