Man Accused Of Yelling Racial Slurs, Spitting After Fairfield Crash

FAIRFIELD, CT — A 58-year-old Bridgeport man was arrested on a charge of second-degree intimidation bigotry/bias on May 3 after Fairfield police said he "assaulted a Hispanic male by spitting in his face, yelling racial slurs in public," following a car crash between the two.

Stephen St. Raymond also was charged with second-degree breach of peace following the incident, which police said included St. Raymond "hitting a vehicle that was not owned by him with his fists causing annoyance and alarm."

The incident occurred at about 5:20 p.m. near the Stop and Shop gas station on Villa Avenue in Fairfield.

When officers arrived, they saw St. Raymond "actively yelling and hitting the front end of" the victim's vehicle. Police said the two had been in a crash at the gas station.

"Police asked St-Raymond to stand by his vehicle and to stop yelling and hitting the Volkswagen," the Fairfield police report reads. "St-Raymond refused officer’s order and was very uncooperative on scene by continuing to scream and hit the front end of [the victim's] vehicle with his fists. Police then detained St-Raymond in handcuffs (double locked) after refusing to stop screaming and hitting the vehicle. After being put in handcuffs, St-Raymond appeared to throw himself to the ground and went prone on the pavement stating that police pushed him to the ground. St-Raymond denied having any injuries after this incident. St-Raymond was then put in the back of a police cruiser."

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A witness appeared to corroborate the police account of St. Raymond's behavior, calling his actions before officers arrived as "out of control," according to Fairfield police.

The crash occurred after the victim was trying to make a left turn from Villa Avenue onto Tunxis Hill Road, but was blocked by St. Raymond, police said.

"St-Raymond was actively blocking him from moving to the left turn lane," police said. [The victim] stated that St-Raymond was being aggressive, driving close to his vehicle and kept blocking him from turning."

St. Raymond then pulled up next to the victim, and began to yell at the victim, police said, including uttering the phrase, "you’re a f---ing s---k." He also spit in the victim's face, police said.

As the victim tried to pull in front of St. Raymond, the two vehicles collided, police said. The two men then got out of their vehicles, and St. Raymond began to hit the victim's car.

Police said that St. Raymond admitted to calling the victim the slur.

After he was charged at Fairfield Police Headquarters, St. Raymond was released on a promise to appear in Bridgeport Superior Court on May 17.