Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
L.I. Hate Crime Teen Describes "Beaner Hopping" Practice
By
Sabrina Jaszi
Published Mar 30, 2010
Modified Mar 30, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
AP, James Carbone
By
Sabrina Jaszi
Published Mar 30, 2010
Modified Mar 30, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Yesterday in court a Long Island teen candidly described the much-talked about but little-understood practice of "beaner hopping" that led to the hate crime death of Ecuadorean immigrant Marcelo Lucero. “It’s when you go out and you look for a Hispanic to beat up,” 19-year-old Nicholas Hausch told a packed courtroom, recalling several sprees of name-calling, BB-gun shooting and beating. In his testimony, Hausch testified that his friend Jeffrey Conroy told him he'd stabbed Lucero, reports CityRoom. “Imagine if I get away with this,” the Swastika-tatooed teen allegedly boasted to his peers.
On a Friday night in November 2008 Hausch said he drove to Patchogue with two friends and a BB gun, using it to shoot a Hispanic man on his porch. On Saturday they went out with a larger crew, this time stopping the vehicle to yell "beaner" and "Mexican" at a man on a bike. After punching and kicking him, Hausch revealed that he took the victim's baseball cap "as a trophy." In the parking lot of the train station they found their next targets, who yelled back when the slurs began. After a teen punched him in the face, one man—Lucero—started swinging his belt at them. Hausch told the court he started walking off but at that moment, Conroy approached, telling him they had to go. “That’s when he told me that he stabbed him,” said the witness.
Lucero later died, and it's possible that Conroy will be sentenced to life in prison. As for Hausch, he's pleaded guilty to lesser charges and though he's one of the first to tell the story in any detail, he didn't offer any justification for his actions and wasn't asked if he felt remorse. Four others from his gang have pleaded guilty, and two more who've pleaded not guilty will take the stand soon.
Tagged
beaner hopping
hate crime
hispanic
Jeffrey Conroy
long island
Marcelo Lucero
murder
nicholas hausch
stabbing
Sabrina Jaszi
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
Published Sep 28, 2026 at 4:15 p.m. ET
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
The Garden State now requires that corn masa dough and flour made and sold in the state be fortified with folic acid.
By
Arya Sundaram
News
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
The Garden State now requires that corn masa dough and flour made and sold in the state be fortified with folic acid.
By
Arya Sundaram
A Brooklyn jail cell filled with smoke. The emergency button failed, a lawyer said.
By
Samantha Max
Crews launch tunnel machines to dig first new Hudson River rail tunnels since 1910
By
Michael Sol Warren
NYC nor’easter dries up after weather service reports minor flooding
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .