Man Charged in Desecration of Home

Police have a suspect in the case of an African American woman whose La Habra home was spray-painted with a swastika last month, authorities said Wednesday.

Christopher William Smith, 21, of La Habra was already in custody on unrelated charges, police said. He is accused of painting the swastika on the front window of Stella Rodgers’ home July 21.

“It was pretty stressful,” Rodgers, 56, said of the ordeal. But “I had lots of support.”

A Neighborhood Watch group formed immediately after the incident and has been meeting regularly since, she said Wednesday.

The Orange County district attorney’s office charged Smith on Tuesday with one count of terrorizing Rodgers by desecrating her home, a possible felony, and two misdemeanor counts. He was also charged with violating Rodgers’ civil rights and vandalism.

The state attorney general’s office earlier this month reported a slight decline in hate crimes in California for 1998. In Orange County, the number of such incidents fell to 83 last year from 98 in 1997. The numbers are compiled from reports by various law enforcement agencies.