An Antioch woman is being held in San Rita Jail in Dublin after allegedly attempting to kill a transgender woman in Berkeley's People's Park August 21.
Police from the University of California Police Department responded to the scene.
"During the course of the investigation, it was determined that the ... assault was an anti-transgender hate crime based on information provided during the investigation," according to a statement from UCPD Officer Sabrina Reich to the Bay Area Reporter.
The suspect, a 20-year-old woman named Destiny Kellogg, was arrested after UC Berkeley police responded to a call about a tent being set ablaze and a woman subjected to a violent attack.
The East Bay Times reported that when an officer arrived "less than a minute after an alert about the attack," he found Kellogg standing near the victim, who has not been publicly identified, holding a shovel. Kellogg allegedly fled the scene, running across the street to a building where the officer detained and arrested her, he told the paper.
"There are two suspects who are still at large," the UCPD spokesperson told the B.A.R.
Kellogg had also been standing near two shovels when the police arrived, the Times reported. One was apparently stained with blood on its handle. The victim, interviewed by police while she was in hospital, identified Kellogg as one of three people who had attacked her. There was no indication whether the victim knew her attackers.
Surveillance footage seen by the officer showed that Kellogg "hit the victim approximately 11 times with the metal end of a shovel over the course of five minutes, according to the court declaration," the Times reported. "'Each shovel strike appeared to be aimed at the victim's head and upper body' before stomping the victim in the head," the paper added, quoting the declaration.
Kellogg, who works at a McDonald's according to her Facebook profile and who moved to Contra Costa Country from Las Vegas in 2020, is being held without bail and will have a pretrial hearing September 13. She faces several charges including first degree attempted murder, use of a deadly weapon, and subjecting her alleged victim to "great bodily injury," according to the Alameda County Sheriff's office.
"The investigation into other potential suspects and crimes is still ongoing," stated Reich.
It was not immediately clear if Kellogg has an attorney. A spokesperson at the Alameda County Public Defender's office said the office was checking to see if it was representing her.
UCPD is asking the public to call 510-642-6760 if they have any information about this incident.
The State of California offers help for victims or witnesses to a hate crime or hate incident. This resource is supported in whole or in part by funding provided by the State of California, administered by the California State Library in partnership with the California Department of Social Services and the California Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander American Affairs as part of the Stop the Hate program. To report a hate incident or hate crime and get support, go to CA vs Hate.
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