BPD security video shows anxious teachers, students — and a man accused of a hate crime
A security camera at the Bellingham Police Department captured scenes of a June 12 middle school field trip and the aftermath of an attack that is being charged as a hate crime.
Paul Jonathan Bittner, 42, is accused of targeting and assaulting an 11-year-old Bellingham boy who was returning from a field trip with his class in downtown Bellingham. Police arrested Bittner a few blocks away. Bittner is white, and the boy is African American.
Bittner was charged June 14 in Whatcom County Superior Court with one count of a hate crime and one count of second-degree assault of a child. Bittner’s hate crime charge states that he “maliciously and intentionally” assaulted another person because of the perception of their race, while his assault crime charge states that he intentionally assaulted a child under the age of 13 and “thereby recklessly inflict(ed) substantial bodily harm” upon the child, according to court records.
Bittner pleaded not guilty to the charges at his arraignment hearing Friday morning, June 21. Dozens of community members packed a small fifth-floor courtroom in the Whatcom County Courthouse during the hearing in support of the child and his family.
