A Plainfield man has been charged with a hate crime after allegedly yelling a racial slur at a 9-year-old boy in Naperville, then pushing him and throwing his bike, according to a joint news release from the Naperville Police Department and DuPage County State’s Attorney’s office.
Man granted pretrial release but with conditions
29-year-old Jeffrey Feigenbaum has been charged with two counts of hate crime and one count each of misdemeanor battery and disorderly conduct.
At a court appearance Sunday in DuPage County, he was granted pretrial release, under the condition that he wear a GPS monitoring device, stay at least 5,000 feet away from the victim as well as his home and school, and surrender any firearms, ammunition, or any other dangerous weapons to the Naperville Police Department.
Suspect allegedly yelled racial slur at 9-year-old
The alleged incident took place on June 13, in the area of 1400 W. Jefferson Ave. Police responded to a report of a white man pushing a Black juvenile “and calling him the N-word,” officials said.
An investigation showed that the 9-year-old boy had been building a fort in the area with some friends, when a girl, whom police say was later identified as Feigenbaum’s girlfriend’s daughter, allegedly damaged it.
Authorities say that the boy knocked on the door of the girl’s home on West Jefferson Avenue, at which point Feigenbaum allegedly came out, yelled a racial slur at the boy, shoved him, and threw his bike.
‘Hate crimes have no place in a civilized society’
DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin called the allegations “disturbing.”
“Hate crimes have no place in a civilized society. DuPage County is comprised of dozens of extremely welcoming and diverse communities and the type of behavior alleged in this case will not be tolerated,” said Berlin.
Naperville Police Chief Jason Arres applauded the work of the responding officers and said this type of behavior will not be tolerated.
“Every person in our community has the right to live free from intimidation, violence, and hate. Conduct involving threats, physical aggression, and racial slurs directed at a child is completely unacceptable and stands in direct opposition to the values we expect and uphold in Naperville,” Arres said.
Feigenbaum is scheduled to be back in court on July 13.
Photo: Handout DuPage County State’s Attorney’s office
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