Original article no longer available
ABC local News
By Stacey Baca
April 27, 2005
Chicago woman may have violated bond
A Trinity International University student accused of sending hate mail to fellow minority students was to appear in court Wednesday on charges of felony hate crime and disorderly conduct.
Police said 19-year-old Alicia Hardin, a freshman from Chicago, had no intention of harming anyone. They said she reportedly wanted to leave Trinity. She allegedly sent threatening letters to students in an attempt to convince her parents the Bannockburn school was not safe. She could face up to five years in prison.
Hardin did not appear in court on Wednesday because of fears for her safety. Prosecutors said she may face additional charges of violating her bond after she allegedly text messaged a female student at Trinity Tuesday night.
“In that message she indicated she had done nothing wrong and she was forced to say what she had said,” said Assist. State’s Attorney George Strickland.
Hardin is accused of sending three threatening letters to three minority students at the university. Bannockburn police say she confessed to writing the letter. On Wednesday, the judge clarified the conditions of her bond.
“She is to have no contact with any person who is in any way affiliated with Trinity College. She is to not ingest any forms of drugs or alcohol or to attempt to use the internet, email, texts me messaging, third parties, telegraphs, letters, or any other conceivable way to communicate with the person,” said Strickland.
She allegedly wrote the letters to convince her parents that the school was not a safe place. Today there were questions about her mental state.
“The defense indicated she has been taking antidepressant drugs. Unaware of what those are, but he said she is not to use drug or alcohol partially because she is on those drugs,” said Strickland. >> Hardin is expected to be in court in May. If convicted of the most serious charges, the felony hate crime, she could face up to five years in prison.