Chase McClary, 24, of Johnsonville was sentenced Tuesday to four years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release for a racially-motivated attack on an African American teenager.
McClary pleaded guilty in June to violating the Matthew Shepard James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act.
During his guilty plea, McClary admitted that in August 2010, he approached a 16-year-old African-American boy and hit him numerous times with the jagged end of a broken coffee mug because of the victim's race.
The assault happened at a home in the Brandon Woods Subdivision in Florence. Investigators say the West Florence High School Student was visiting a friend when he was attacked. The boy needed 200 stitches.
"The Department of Justice is committed to aggressively prosecuting hate-fueled acts of violence," said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. "Today's sentence makes clear that racially-motivated attacks will not be tolerated in this country."
"Working with the Civil Rights Division, this U.S. Attorney's Office will continue to prioritize the prosecution of hate crimes and other civil rights violations in the District of South Carolina," said William N. Nettles, U.S. Attorney for the District of South Carolina.
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