Redondo Beach Man Charged With Torrance Hate Crime

REDONDO BEACH, CA — A Redondo Beach man accused of assaulting two people in Torrance while hurling racial epithets is set to be arraigned Wednesday.

Dennis Aaron Wyman, 42, is charged with two counts of assault with a deadly weapon—a car—and one count of hit-and-run driving resulting in serious injury to another person. He is also facing a special allegation that the alleged crimes were hate crimes.

On June 29, Wyman allegedly began yelling racial insults at a small group of Black people at Staybridge Suites parking lot before getting into his car and driving it toward one of the victims. When one of the victims' fathers arrived to help, Wyman continued his insults, struck the father with the car and fled the scene, prosecutors allege. The father was taken to a hospital and treated for serious injuries.

Wyman, who was arrested on July 8, is being held on $1 million bail.

If convicted as charged in a criminal complaint filed Friday, he faces up to 12 years in prison, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.

- City News Service and Nicole Charky contributed to this report.

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