A state Corrections Department employee was formally charged with a hate crime in connection with the confrontation earlier this month with two Muslim men who were praying in a Castro Valley park.

Denise Slader was charged with battery and violating the civil rights of the men in conjunction with the hate-crime provision of the state penal code, according to the complaint filed Wednesday in Alameda County Superior Court in Hayward.

The complaint said Slader “willfully and unlawfully used force and violence” on one of the men, Rasheed Albeshari, and “unlawfully injured and interfered” with his civil rights.

In the incident, which occurred at Lake Chabot and was captured on video that Albeshari took, Slader is seen shouting at the men that their god is Satan and the Quran is “evil.” Slader is seen hitting Albeshari with an umbrella and throwing coffee on him. The video has been viewed hundreds of thousands of times online.

“We take very seriously conduct that infringes upon our citizens’ right to be free of violence and hatred. Ms. Slader’s actions must be addressed within the criminal justice system,” said Alameda County District Attorney Nancy E. O’Malley.

Slader is scheduled to be arraigned on Jan. 7 in Hayward.

#Islamophobia After praying, this lady approached us and started yelling at us that we're brainwashed for believing in Allah, "Allah is evil" she said. I started video taping her, I ,also, was hit by an umbrella before taking a shower of coffee right on my face. And what happened next was this.. Posted by Rasheed Albeshari on Monday, December 7, 2015

“Look, I don’t want to talk to you,” she said, in response to a reporter’s phone call. “No comment. No comment. Goodbye.”

Albeshari, who lives in San Francisco, studies at City College of San Francisco and drives for a ride service, called O’Malley’s decision a “first step for justice.”

“I trust the justice system and we’ll wait for the court decision,” he said Thursday. “It was great that people stood up for what’s right. I love that.”

Slader works as a program technician in the parole division for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Spokesman Jeffrey Callison said the department had just learned of the decision and did not know of any immediate change in Slader’s employment status. He said the department is conducting its own investigation.

“We expect all of our employees to treat everyone with dignity and respect both on and off the job. We cannot comment on the specifics of that investigation; however, discrimination of any kind will not be tolerated,” Callison said.

The local chapter of the Council for American-Islamic Relations praised the decision to charge Slader.

“We commend law enforcement’s thorough investigation and swift action following this incident,” said CAIR civil rights coordinator Brice Hamack. “With the recent unprecedented rise in hate attacks targeting Muslims across the nation, this sends the message that hate crimes will not be tolerated in the Bay Area.”

Steve Rubenstein is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: srubenstein@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SteveRubeSF