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By Justin Klawans
Night Reporter
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A Massachusetts woman has been sentenced to probation and community service after using her car as a weapon in an attempt to run over a group of Black pedestrians, officials said Wednesday.
Rhonda Wozniak, 61, of Lynn, pleaded guilty Tuesday to eight counts of civil rights violations, along with eight counts of assault with a deadly weapon, in regards to an incident that had taken place in nearby Swampscott.
Wozniak was originally arrested in July 2020 after trying to drive her Ford Escape into three Black women and five Black children who were walking through the parking lot in front of a local cookie store. The children were ages 5 to 12.
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It was not stated why Wozniak tried to run the women down or what events provoked this reaction. However, after nearly being hit by the car, the group of women allegedly asked Wozniak to drive more slowly.
This caused her to unleash a barrage of racist insults towards the group.
A press release from the Essex County District Attorney's Office stated, "When one of the women asked her to slow down, she shouted racial insults and slurs at them and told them to go back where they belong. One of the children asked their mother, 'Where do we belong?'"
In the statement, Essex District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett added, "The defendant's action were harmful and offensive, not only to the victims, but also to the community at large."
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Local police officers used video surveillance from nearby stores and license plate recognition software to locate Wozniak.
She was able to avoid jail time and was sentenced in the Lynn District Court Tuesday to 40 hours of community service, along with nine months' probation. Prosecutors had previously requested 100 hours of community service along with one year of probation, while the defense had called for the case to be held without finding for another six months.
She was also ordered to keep her distance from the victims and to not contact them.
Wozniak's defense attorneys told the media in a statement that they had originally been preparing to take the case to trial, as she had originally pleaded not guilty in September 2020. However, Wozniak "ultimately decided to plead guilty, and in exchange was sentenced to probation."
The town in which the incident occurred, Swampscott, lists its demographics as nearly 100 percent white in the most recent census. Only 0.74 percent identified themselves as Black or African-American.
Newsweek has reached out to the Lynn Police Department for comment.
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