Man arrested on suspicion of hate crime after allegedly assaulting Whatcom healthcare worker
A possible hate crime case has been sent to the county prosecutor’s office after a man allegedly assaulted a healthcare worker because of their heritage.
Christopher T. Boehringer, 42, was arrested May 25 on suspicion of third-degree assault and a hate crime, according to Bellingham police.
Boehringer was not taken into custody due to his medical needs, but the case has been forwarded to the Whatcom County Prosecutor’s Office for a charging decision, according to Bellingham Police Lt. Claudia Murphy.
Around 11 a.m. on Tuesday, Bellingham police responded to St. Joseph’s hospital for the report of an assault on two healthcare providers.
Boehringer is a patient in a unit of the hospital where the two healthcare providers were working, Murphy said.
Boehringer was being treated by the first healthcare worker, who is of Asian heritage. As the healthcare worker walked away, Boehringer allegedly became angry, approached the healthcare worker and scratched their face, Murphy said.
The healthcare worker sustained swelling and had a mark on their face below their eye, Murphy said.
When the second healthcare worker saw the confrontation, they asked Boehringer why he was angry and he “mentioned his dislike of Asian people,” Murphy said. Boehringer then allegedly pushed the second healthcare worker twice and tried to punch them in the head, Murphy said.
The second healthcare worker was not injured, she said.
Boehringer allegedly admitted to police that he has a dislike for Asian people and that was why he assaulted the first healthcare worker, Murphy said.
