Louisiana resident Sharmeka Moffitt, who was set on fire, claims attack was race-related

NEW ORLEANS A 20-year-old black woman said she was set on fire by three men who wrote the initials KKK and a racial slur on her car in northeastern Louisiana, police said Monday.

Officers found Sharmeka Moffitt with burns on more than half of her body when they responded to her emergency call Sunday night, said Louisiana State Police spokeswoman Lt. Julie Lewis.

The FBI is investigating the attack as a possible hate crime, but no arrests had been made as of late Monday, Lewis said. She said Moffitt was in critical condition at a hospital and that some of her injuries were third-degree burns.

Moffitt told police the men doused her in a flammable liquid and set her on fire at a park in Winnsboro, a town in Franklin Parish. Lewis said she extinguished the fire using water from a spigot before a police officer arrived.

Officers found the letters KKK - an apparent reference to the white supremacist Ku Klux Klan - and a racial slur smeared in a paste-like substance on the hood of her car, Lewis said.

On the emergency call, Moffitt described her attackers as three men wearing white hoods or hats, Lewis said. She later told a Winnsboro Police officer who responded to the call that the men were wearing white hoodies. She was unable to say what race her attackers were. The officer found no suspects or vehicles at Civitan Park where the attack allegedly happened, and the park has no surveillance cameras, Lewis said. She said the state crime lab was analyzing several pieces of evidence.

Franklin Sheriff Kevin Cobb called it "a horrific event" and said authorities would "follow the facts and seek justice."

Otis Chisley, the president of the local branch of the NAACP, a civil rights group, said he had been in touch with Moffitt's distraught family. He said he was waiting for more facts to come to light before drawing any conclusions about what happened and that "everyone wants to move with caution."

Regardless of the investigation's outcome, though, Chisley said, racism and KKK activity remain a fact of life in the state.

"It's prevalent throughout Louisiana," he said. "It's hidden but it exists."

[misharyutubbee]

Once again, a fake racist attack. The NAACP has lost all credibility.

[cherrybrown]

No.........clearly stated below.

Otis Chisley, the president of the local branch of the NAACP, a civil rights group, said he had been in touch with Moffitt's distraught family. He said he was waiting for more facts to come to light before drawing any conclusions about what happened and that "everyone wants to move with caution."

Excellent job of getting the facts before spewing off on this incident. This was a sick individual who did this to herself. Nothing to do with the NAACP.

[Sweetlady238]

Stop it already...you're being outrageous! Why would you discredit the NAACP? I suppose you'll be finding fault with the President next.

[mystqfae]

Sadly, the evidence shows she did this to herself. I hope she gets the medical and mental health treatment she needs. We don't know, she may believe someone did this to her even though the evidence points to her.

http://www.franklinsun.com/news.php?id=5412

[cherrybrown]

Yes MYSTQFAE this is sad sad sad. I also hope she gets the help she needs.

[cherrybrown]

Otis Chisley, the president of the local branch of the NAACP, a civil rights group, said he had been in touch with Moffitt's distraught family. He said he was waiting for more facts to come to light before drawing any conclusions about what happened and that "everyone wants to move with caution."

Things that make you go hmmmmmmmm...........

[USarmyVETERAN04]

I agree with Brufanegra, don't confuse the issue at hand by trying to bring up something totally irrelevant, if it happened to that child that is just as terrible as it happening to this woman. HATE in any form from ANY RACE is a disgrace to us all at the same time reporters and news producers decide what stories to tell and others pick them up, so my question is how did you hear the stories about those terrible things? somone had to report it it ended up in the news somehow so don't get mad at this woman because it diden't make national news Judyneric! the facts are this country is built from the sweat and blood of slaves but supposidly the world has changed, but stories like this say otherwise and that's the point perod!

[TexasCop337]

There are a couple of issues here:

1. Her worst burns were on her arms. Then the burns continued down her chest and to her legs.
2. The KKK written on her hood was done in a paste-like substance.
3. She was alone in an area with no witnesses and no video surveillance.

Here's what I see. Women are very vain creatures. Nearly every woman in this country wears cosmetics to make themselves look more appealing. If someone is going to douse you with a flammable liquid, how do they miss the face? Also, if you're going to flip a gas can around to cover yourself, you're going to coat your arms as you flip the container around.

Why use a non-harmful item or substance to put KKK on the car? Why not scratch it in with a key or a knife? Why was so much are taken so as not to permanently damage the car? This lack of damage shows a personal connection to the car.

If you're a hate group hunting for a victim, why would you search for someone in a desolate area?

I've been a police officer for over 20 years and I'm telling you, there's a problem with this case and I really think self-inflicted injuries need to be looked at.

[dynasty040]

o now u sound real dumb y would she do that to herself I don't know anyone who would put themselves through that much pain just to be put in the limelight that makes no sense to me if your no longer a police officer good for that county for you saying something that stupid they need to take all of your pension and retirement money to give to that young lady ur talking so badly about.

[mystqfae]

Sadly, it seems to be that she did in fact make it up and harm herself

http://www.franklinsun.com/news.php?id=5412

[sciline]

Prejudice is a malignant state of mind, devoid of intellect and sustained by hate.
Trying to reason the prejudice out of someone is like trying to convince a corpse that physical therapy is the only solution to its problem.
Tom Nass
5th Marine Division - WWII

[Sweetlady238]

True...but in this case this woman is propagating prejudice by falsely accusing the KKK of something, in this case, that they didn't do.

[judyneric]

It's funny how it's only a hate crime when the perpetrators are white, and the victim is black. And how it only gets national coverage in those instances.

Zachary Gamble? Melissa Coon's 13 yr old son who was lit on fire by black boys for being "a white boy"? Why don't these (and hundreds of other) cases get the same attention?

Look at the crime rates. Blacks commit hate crimes and crimes against other races several times higher than what is committed "against" them.

[brufanegra]

Last time I checked, white was a race. So if this child was attacked based on the color of his skin then this is also a hate crime. Don't try to write off what happened to this woman with your ignorant gibberish. All hate-based crimes are tragic and should be investigated fairly.

[dynasty040]

Baby it's a hate crime no matter what the race is and everyone should be treated the same when it's a crime this horrible and no matter if they was burned,puched,kicked all of it should be punishable by law everyone should have been told to keep their hands to themselves.