A Portland man, who allegedly attacked a California father and his 5-year-old daughter because of their race, is facing 12 additional charges stemming from another incident months earlier.
Dylan J. Kesterson pleaded not guilty Wednesday to a 19-count indictment that included five counts of first-degree bias crime and three counts of second-degree bias crime.
Court records said Kesterson repeatedly yelled a slur in an unprovoked July 2 attack on the California father and daughter, targeting their race. He then punched the father multiple times in the head and used a “hammer fist” to hit his daughter’s head, according to the charging documents.
She was wearing a helmet and did not have any injuries, records show. The new charges stem from an alleged assault on April 17.
The indictment accuses Kesterson of harassing two women and injuring another woman in April. The details of the incident have not been revealed by prosecutors or police.
Kesterson’s arrest on July 2 drew the attention of local officials, including Mayor Ted Wheeler after Kesterson was released the same day from Multnomah County’s downtown jail.
Portland police re-arrested him later that day, after he failed to appear for a scheduled court appearance.
–Zaeem Shaikh; mshaikh@oregonian.com; 503-221-8111; @zaeemshake
