A Kansas man who fatally shot an Indian immigrant in a bar last year pleaded guilty to murder on Tuesday. He still faces federal charges of a hate crime. Prosecutors argued that Kuchibhotla and Madasani were targeted because of their “actual and perceived race, color, religion and national origin.”The Justice Department stepped in to file the hate crime charges since Kansas lacks state hate crime laws. The number of hate crimes across the country hit a five-year peak in 2016, with an even larger uptick following Donald Trump’s presidential victory. Federal prosecutors have not yet said if they plan to seek the death penalty for Purinton.

Source: Huffington Post March 07, 2018 18:56 UTC