JACKSONVILLE, Fla — The video above may be disturbing to some.
A new video released by the Florida State Attorney's Office shows the moments leading up to an assault caught on video at a Jacksonville gas station -- an incident that has the victim, her family and community activists calling for hate crime charges.
Footage of the assault, which shows a white man beating a Black woman in public, brought outrage from the Jacksonville community when it was released in May. The footage that circulated the internet showed the victim identified as Rayme McCoy at the gas station counter with her back to the camera, while a man punches her repeatedly.
A statement by McCoy's attorney says she was pregnant at the time of the attack.
Police said when they arrived to serve a warrant at Williamson's residence on May 20, they say he spontaneously uttered, "did you watch the whole video? She hit me first."
The new video shows the moments leading up to the assault and is much higher quality. This video is from a different perspective and is more complete than the original video -- you can see McCoy fully in the frame and the camera appears to be positioned behind the man who assaulted her.
The video shows McCoy checking out at the counter at the BP gas station and is approached by the man she says is Kevin Williamson, 59.
The video shows the man setting down a pack of beer, and then appears to say something to her. She speaks back to him, appearing agitated, possibly yelling. The man points at her and she pushes his beers onto the floor. He then begins repeatedly punching her. She tries to shield her face and he continues to punch her before leaving -- McCoy is visibly very shaken.
McCoy spoke with First Coast News after the attack. She recalled that she went inside the business to get gas when she heard a man yelling racial slurs to another person. She says she went to pay for her purchase and the man came up behind her. When she asked for space, he became agitated, she says; he then began to repeatedly punch her.
"He came in after me and was basically yelling 'y'all kind, you need to go back where you came from,'" said McCoy. "I'm pushing his beers away from me and once I pushed the beers away from me, he started punching me in my head."
Williamson has been arrested and charged with felony battery.
He was originally charged with misdemeanor battery, but his charges were upgraded Friday. A felony battery usually means that the victim sustained injuries and can carry a sentence of up to five years.
Williamson's bail was raised to $50,003. He had previously bonded out, but documents show he was in jail as of Friday.
McCoy's family, along with their attorney and local activists, held a press conference on May 25, calling for the State Attorney's Office to treat this incident as a racially motivated hate crime.
McCoy's attorney, Amy Hanna, released a statement on her behalf following Williamson's Friday arraignment. Read the full statement below:
Kevin Williamson, 59, appeared before a judge Friday with his public defender. His misdemeanor battery charge was dropped and he was charged with felony battery. We still await the addition of hate crime charges, but thank the Sheriff’s Office and the State Attorneys for the upgraded charge. Ms. McCoy was pregnant at the time of the attack, so two lives were subject to Mr. Williamson’s violence. We demand release of the surveillance and body camera video from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and State Attorney’s Office.