Vandals defaced rocks in front of the Esplanade at the North Haven Manor Association as well as a neighboring property sometime last week. The letters “KKK” were crudely painted in black on one boulder, with “I h8 N-word” on a second.
According to the report by Southampton Town Police, they responded to the location on Mashomuck Drive on October 13. Witnesses interviewed said they last saw the rocks unmolested on Monday, October 11. According to Southampton Town Police spokesperson Lieutenant Sue Ralph, there have been no other similar acts of vandalism in the area.
While the wording on the rock qualifies as hate speech, to rise to the level of a hate crime, an act must be focused directly at a specific victim, she explained.