Irvine man charged with hate crimes after allegedly beating elderly driver and throwing hot coffee at another

An Irvine man faces hate crime charges after he allegedly threw a hot cup of coffee at a man and beat an elderly driver while shouting racial slurs. 

The Orange County District Attorney's Office described suspect Robert Tackett's actions as "hate motivated attacks" against two Hispanic men. 

Prosecutors charged Tackett, 54, with four counts related to the assaults, including inflicting injury on an elderly adult. He faces a maximum of eight years in state prison if convicted on all counts. He's being held at the Orange County Jail in lieu of $500,000 bail. 

"Hate is a venom that poisons everything – and everyone – it touches. An attack motivated by hate is not an attack on just a single individual; it is an attack on the very fabric of our society and our community as a whole," Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said. 

The two alleged assaults happened on July 22 in two Orange County cities. 

In the morning, Tackett allegedly followed a garbage truck driver through Irvine on Sand Canyon Avenue near the 5 Freeway. The Irvine Police Department said Tackett tried to run the other driver off the road while shouting racial slurs at him. The Orange County District Attorney's Office said he allegedly tried to crash into the garbage truck twice, but the other driver quickly slammed the brakes and avoided a collision each time. 

After intentionally trying to crash into the victim, Tackett allegedly threw a hot cop of coffee that landed on the victim's face, hands and car interior, according to Irvine PD. 

The second assault happened at around 5:30 p.m. in Westminster. Tackett allegedly got out of his work van while stopped at a light, repeatedly punched a 72-year-old driver through an open window and shouted racial slurs. 

The California Highway Patrol arrested Tackett in Mammoth two days after the attacks. 

"Every member of our society deserves to go about their days unafraid that they would be targeted because of the color of their skin, their gender, or their sexual orientation," Spitzer said. "We must collectively combat hate by speaking up and speaking out against hate – and haters – to continue to send a strong message that hate will never be tolerated here in Orange County or anywhere."