VANCOUVER, Wash. -- A Vancouver mother is demanding justice for her biracial son after someone carved a racial slur on the side of her car over the weekend. She asked to stay anonymous for fear of retaliation.
"My son is biracial he is mixed with black. And unfortunately, he had to witness this when we came to the car," said the Vancouver mother. "It starts here with the N and the rest of it is all spelled out... here's the R."
Her son is just 9 years old and has special needs, and she said the incident has traumatized him. The mother said they have lived at the McAllister Village apartments in Vancouver for the past 13 years, but things turned sour about two years ago.
"He has been frightened ever since this happened," the mother told KGW. "He is scared to sleep in his own bed now."
The mother said she has an idea of who carved the slur on her car and believes that person is her neighbor who lives two doors down and moved in 4 years ago.
"This neighbor has used this slur verbally towards my son before, who again is 9 years old, and this is an adult man," she said. 'He has also physically threatened my son."
A spokesperson confirmed that the Vancouver Police Department took a report of a possible hate crime offense at the complex on Saturday. The spokesperson also said that another person in the same complex reported that her tires had been slashed, but the agency couldn't say if the two incidents were related.
"[The Vancouver Police Department] have assured me that without video evidence they are not going to be able to bring forth changes," said the mother to KGW. "They did recommend I could go through the courts for a restraining order but again, with him living two doors down, that doesn't seem like it's going to be much help at this point."
Vancouver Police said they doesn't have any information on a suspect at this time, adding that an officer followed up on all possible leads that were provided and no one has been arrested. The mother said an officer contacted her and told her that the surveillance video they received from the apartment complex was "too grainy" to determine a suspect.
The mother told KGW she feels frustrated with how Vancouver police handled the investigation.
"He is the only person in this community that is causing problems for anyone," she said.
The mother and her son currently live in low-income housing she said they're now searching for a new place to live after 13 years, to bring peace back to the family.
"This person clearly has some hate in their heart," she said. "And I'm just praying for them to get the help that they need for their own self as well as for our community's safety."