A 43-year-old woman faces hate crime charges for allegedly attacking a young woman wearing a hijab and calling her a "terrorist" in Mountain View last month, the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office announced Tuesday.
Attosa Biglari, who the district attorney describes as a transient, faces more than a year in prison if found guilty for hate crime and battery charges. Biglari also has charges against her for a June 24 incident in which she allegedly threatened a woman with a pair of scissors.
On July 1 shortly after 3 p.m., police responded to reports of an unprovoked attack in downtown Mountain View.
According to the District Attorney's Office, an 18-year-old woman was walking by herself on Castro Street when a woman began screaming at her, calling her a "terrorist" and said she was "hacking" her. The woman allegedly approached the young woman, grabbed her headscarf and began pulling it.
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Two witnesses state in court filings that the woman pushed the victim against a wall and grabbed her neck. The two witnesses proceeded to help the victim as Biglari fled on a bicycle and was later arrested by police, prosecutors said. Biglari will be arraigned on Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. at the Palo Alto Courthouse.
"We have no tolerance for those whose intolerance crosses the line into criminality and violence," District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a statement. "Hate has no home in Santa Clara County. We also commend the courage of the two women who quickly stepped forward to assist the victim. They are wonderful examples of the national campaign slogan against hate -- 'if you see something, say something.'"
