Police: Attacks near Georgetown are hate crimes

D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier tells WTOP she believes the incidents are hate crimes.

Two physical assaults were off-campus, but the latest incident occurred on university grounds.

Police say a written slur was posted on the door of the university's Gay, Lesbian and Transgender Center on Monday.

Georgetown has sent an email to students, faculty and staff calling the acts "unacceptable," and a very serious matter.

The university is meeting with the D.C. Police Lesbian, Gay Liaison Unit and increasing patrols on campus and the neighborhood.

Over the weekend, a student was assaulted near 36th and N streets. Police say a man repeatedly asked the student if he was gay and used slur words before attacking him. The student was taken to Georgetown University Hospital.

Last week, another student was physically and verbally assaulted by two men because she was wearing a gay-rights shirt.

Georgetown officials say it's not clear if the people responsible are students.

Police are asking anyone with information to come forward.

"These assaults, on or off campus are a serious concern for us. We will do everything in our power to bring those responsible to justice. We have aggressive laws in the District to prosecute hate crimes to the fullest extent of the law, and we intend to use them," Lanier tells WTOP.

(Copyright 2009 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)