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A Seattle man, who said that he hoped President Donald Trump would kill all trans people, has been sentenced to seven years in prison for a violent attack on a transgender woman in the city’s University District. Prosecutors said the case illustrates how harassment can quickly escalate into bias-motivated violence.
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On Friday, Andre Karlow was sentenced in King County Superior Court after a jury convicted him of second-degree assault and committing a hate crime for attacking Andie Holcepl last March. Prosecutors argued the assault was fueled by hostility toward Holcepl’s gender identity.
Holcepl testified that she was walking through Seattle’s University District on March 27, 2025, heading to the Seattle Mariners’ opening day game, when she encountered a group of men that included Karlow, according to The Seattle Times. What began as verbal harassment quickly turned violent.
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Prosecutors said Karlow shouted insults and called Holcepl a “drag queen.” When she tried to record the harassment on her phone, Karlow punched her in the mouth, setting off a group assault. Witnesses said Holcepl was punched and kicked while assailants shouted anti-transgender slurs. She suffered broken teeth, facial injuries, and a brain bleed before escaping into a nearby restaurant for help.
Although multiple men were involved, investigators identified Karlow as the primary aggressor. Jurors concluded the assault met Washington state’s legal definition of a hate crime, which requires proof that a victim was targeted because of a protected characteristic such as gender identity.
Prosecutors told the court that the violence reverberated beyond the immediate victim. Assistant prosecutor Yessenia Manzo said attacks like this one “validate the fear” many transgender people feel about being targeted in public spaces.
She also quoted a recorded call Karlow made from jail.
“If I didn’t hate trans people before, I do now, absolutely. I think that Trump should kill them all. Get them out of here. They're weird," he said.
The University District assault was not the only case tied to Karlow. In 2024, he punched a transgender Sound Transit fare ambassador who asked him to verify his fare at a light-rail station. In that case, a jury convicted him of fourth-degree assault but did not reach a verdict on a hate crime charge.
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During sentencing proceedings, Seattle ABC affiliate KOMO-TV reported that Karlow appeared largely remorseless, at times resisting court instructions before ultimately complying.
The judge sentenced Karlow to an 84-month prison term for the attack. Karlow also received a shorter sentence in the earlier assault case.
