Crime

Quincy man sentenced to prison for anti-Asian hate crime

John Sullivan, 78, was sentenced 18 months in prison for a "despicable" hate crime that targeted an Asian family.

John Sullivan sits in a wheelchair during his hearing in Quincy District Court in December of 2022. Photo by Pat Greenhouse/Globe Staff

By Eva Levin

September 5, 2024

2 minutes to read

A Quincy man was sentenced to more than a year in prison for committing a hate crime that targeted an Asian family, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.

John Sullivan, 78, pleaded guilty to one count of violating a hate crimes act. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison and three years of supervised release.

Desiree Thien told The Boston Globe that she, along with her three children and her brother George Ngo, were standing outside of a Quincy post office in December 2022 when Sullivan drove up to them. She said Sullivan told the family to “go back to China” and threatened to kill them.

That’s when, prosecutors said, Sullivan drove his car into Ngo. He continued to drive about 200 feet into traffic with Ngo on the hood of the vehicle until Sullivan slammed the brakes and caused Ngo to slide off, prosecutors said. Sullivan hit Ngo again, which caused him to fall 10 feet into a ditch. Thien told the Globe her brother suffered a concussion from the fall.

In the statement, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts Joshua S. Levy said hate crimes, like those committed by Sullivan, “should never be tolerated.”

“Every single man, woman and child living in Massachusetts has a fundamental right to be free from acts of hate and violence,” said Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy.

Sullivan initially pleaded not guilty to assault, civil rights, and reckless driving charges in Quincy District Court in 2022. However, court documents show district court dropped charges against Sullivan in March 2023. A federal grand jury indicted Sullivan on a hate crime charge in February 2023.

“There is no way to undo the damage Mr. Sullivan caused with his hateful, repulsive, and violent behavior, but hopefully today’s sentence provides some measure of comfort,” Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Boston Division, said in a statement. “All communities in our Commonwealth – deserve respect and the ability to live, work, and raise their children without fear.”

National coalition for reporting hate crime incidents Stop AAPI Hate documented over 9,000 incidents of anti-Asian hate spanning 2020 to 2021. In addition, the FBI reported a seven percent increase in overall hate crimes in 2022, despite data showing a decrease in anti-Asian incidents.

In a sentencing memorandum, Sullivan’s defense attorney called his client “a good person who made a bad decision on the date of this offense.”

“Jack will suffer the consequences of his poor decision. His background suggests his behavior in this case was an aberration and not the norm for him.”

Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.