Acid attack defendant ruled competent to face hate crime charges

The man charged with a hate crime for a November acid attack has been ruled competent to face his prosecution.

Clifton Blackwell, 61, now faces a preliminary hearing on Jan. 14 on charges of first-degree reckless injury, with hate crime and use of a deadly weapon enhancements.

Last month, Circuit Judge Glenn Yamahiro ordered Blackwell to be evaluated at a state mental hospital to see if he was legally competent to go forward in the case. The evaluation determines whether a defendant understands the charges against him and can assist in his own defense.

A doctor's report discussed in court Monday found that Blackwell was competent, so Yamahiro reinstated the proceedings, which had been suspended during the evaluation.

Mahud Villalaz, 42, suffered second-degree burns to his face Nov. 1 after police say Blackwell splashed some kind of acid at the victim during a discussion that followed Blackwell asking him, "Why did you invade my country?"

Villalaz, a U.S. citizen who emigrated from Peru, said Blackwell called him an "illegal" and told him to "go back, go back (expletive)."

Villalaz told police he called Blackwell a "racist (expletive)" before Blackwell threw the acid at him from a metal bottle he had in a satchel.

Police recovered muriatic acid, four bottles of Kleen-Out sulfuric acid and two bottles of lye from Blackwell's residence near South 13th Street and West Edgerton Avenue.

In Wisconsin, "hate crime" refers to extra punishment that can be imposed on someone convicted of a crime when the victim was targeted based on race, religion, color, disability, sexual orientation, national origin or ancestry.

First-degree reckless injury carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison plus 10 years of extended supervision. The hate crime enhancement would allow for an additional five years in prison.

Contact Bruce Vielmetti at (414) 224-2187 or bvielmetti@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @ProofHearsay.