The man accused of vandalizing a San Francisco mosque made his first court appearance Friday as members of the community gathered outside to denounce the attack and a rise in anti-Muslim hate.
Robert Gray, 35, has been charged with felony vandalism with a hate crime enhancement for allegedly using a skateboard to break windows at Masjid al-Tawheed mosque. He pleaded not guilty during Friday's brief court appearance.
Outside the courtroom, the deputy public defender raised questions about the charges.
"There was no ethnic or religious animus, and at this point we don’t believe that there is any indication that there's a hate crime at all," Jack Lamar Jr. said.
Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.
In a statement, District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said, in part, "Our houses of worship are sacred spaces and targeting them in any way will not be tolerated in San Francisco. My office will make it clear that there is zero tolerance for those who commit any crimes targeting our religious spaces."
Outside the mosque, interfaith leaders, police and local officials gathered with a unified message.
"We realized that we had to do something today on behalf of the Muslim community in San Francisco as well as on behalf of Masjid al-Tawheed," Hala Hijazi said.
