A New Hampshire man has been fined $5,000 for yelling racial slurs at a Black family and threatening to spray them with gasoline from a gas station pump and set them on fire.
On July 29 of last year, police say John Doran, 62, confronted a Black family from out of town who stopped at a gas station, shouting, "Go back to Africa, n-----" and "You're not getting any gas here n-----."
When one of the family members exited their vehicle in response, Doran began to issue threats.
"During this interaction, the defendant brandished the gas nozzle at (the victim) and threatened to spray [the victim] with gasoline," court documents state. "The defendant told (the victim) to 'back the f- — up n--- — before I burn the f- — out of you.' [The victim] feared for his safety and believed that the defendant intended to harm him."
When leaving the gas station, Doran continued to shout, "F— you, n-----s," and "Wait till I get back, you better not be here."
A Rockingham County Superior Court judge on Monday ruled that Doran had violated the New Hampshire Civil Rights Act.
"The court concluded that this conduct was motivated by animus towards the victim's race and had the purpose to terrorize or coerce the victim and the victim's family," the New Hampshire Department of Justice explained in a news release.