TOWSON, Md. (WJZ) — It’s a crime that shocked, angered and outraged people across the country. Now the two teenagers accused of beating a transgender woman are charged with a hate crime.

Kelly McPherson explains the new charges.

It’s both hard to watch and unbelievable. Two young women dragged, beat and kicked a transgender woman in a Rosedale McDonald’s while several employees stood by and laughed.

“Really, to tell you the truth, they just seemed like they wanted to pick a fight that night. They really did,” said victim Chrissy Polis.

“While she was having a seizure, they were beating her in her face and in her head and people were just recording it, allowing it to happen,” said Polis’ mother, Renee Carr.

For the past month, the state’s attorney of Baltimore County has examined the video and other evidence to determine if the attackers should face hate crime charges.

“There’s a lot of information out there concerning the situation of the victim and that’s something that we need to look into to see if that was the motivation,” an official said last month.

Tionna Brown, 18, is now facing a hate crime charge on top of felony assault for the beating. Her 14-year-old female accomplice faces the same charges in juvenile court.

“She deserves everything that’s coming to her and I was shocked about the 14-year-old,” Carr said.

Brown and the 14-year-old also face two additional assault charges for attacking people who intervened, including Vicki Thoms.

“I have never in my life seen anything like that. It was like they were going to kill her. I was afraid they were going to kill her and that’s why I stepped in,” Thoms said.

Conviction of a hate crime could mean up to 20 years in prison and a $20,000 fine.