Nicole Marie Poole Franklin
IOWA (US), Dec 23 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A US woman has been charged with attempted murder after telling police in Iowa that she deliberately drove into a girl because she appeared “Mexican”.
The victim, who is 14, sustained “numerous injuries” in the incident.
Police say she was struck while walking to a local school, near Des Moines, on the evening of Dec 9.
“Investigators determined that this incident was an intentional act, not an accident,” police said in a statement announcing the attempted murder charge.
Speaking at a press conference, Police Chief Michael Venema said Nicole Marie Poole Franklin, 42, admitted to hitting the teen on a pavement.
“Franklin told investigators that she ran the girl over because she was, in her words, ‘a Mexican’,” Venema said. “She went on to make a number of derogatory statements about Latinos to our investigators.”
The 42-year-old was already being held in a jail over a separate assault allegedly committed the same day, police said.
The bail amount for the attempted murder charge has been set at $1m (£770,000) and police say they are looking into the possibility of filing hate-crime charges.
The victim suffered concussion and severe bruising but has since returned to school. — NNN-AGENCIES
