Law enforcement has filed hate crime charges against a woman alleged to have participated in dumping red paint and vandalizing the home of Anne Pasternak, who is Jewish and works as the Shelby White and Leon Levy Director of the Brooklyn Museum in New York.
New York City prosecutors charged Taylor Pelton, 28, last week for the June 12 crime that included smeared red paint, inverted red triangles (a pro-Hamas symbol), a sign calling the victim a “white-supremacist Zionist” and stenciled graffiti reading “blood on your hands.”
Pelton pleaded not guilty.
This is not peaceful protest or free speech. This is a crime, and it's overt, unacceptable antisemitism.
— Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@NYCMayor) June 12, 2024
These actions will never be tolerated in New York City for any reason. I'm sorry to Anne Pasternak and members of @brooklynmuseum's board who woke up to hatred like this.
I… pic.twitter.com/vi17PumBoM
A security camera captured the hate crime on video. The group reportedly also targeted the home of Kimberly Panicek Trueblood, the museum’s president and chief operating officer. Police state that they are seeking 15 suspects as the group appeared to hit other locations as well, including the homes of museum board members.
“We are aware the District Attorney has filed criminal charges against an individual accused of participating in the June 12 vandalism at the homes of several Brooklyn Museum leaders. Those affected are cooperating with the authorities,” the Brooklyn Museum said.
