Nine Springfield, Massachusetts youths have been charged with hate crimes in the beating of an openly gay man.
Sgt. John Delaney said the beating occurred shortly after 3 a.m. Tuesday as the 30-year-old victim walked down a Springfield street. Delaney said the victim told police he was then attacked by the suspects who knocked him to the ground, kicked him in the head and abdomen and punched him in the face with closed fists. He said the females in the group encouraged the males to beat up the victim and others yelled disparaging remarks about the victim's sexual orientation during the attack.
The victim and the people accused of attacking him all live in the same neighborhood. While none of the suspects knew the victim by name, they were familiar with him from the neighborhood, police said. The victim told police that a group of youths inside Barrows Park yelled and asked him to come inside the park, said Delaney, aide to Police Commissioner William J. Fitchet. The victim kept walking and told police he was then attacked, knocked him to the ground, kicked him in the head and abdomen and punched him in the face with closed fists, Delaney said. “During the beating, the females encouraged the males to beat up the victim,” Delaney said. He said all yelled remarks disparaging about what they believed to be the victim’s sexual orientation.
The victim was released from the hospital after being treated for head trauma and facial lacerations.
Portland, Oregon police are investigating a possible hate crime after two gay men were beaten after being seen walking hand-in-hand. One of the victims reports: "I left [the ER] with 9 stitches in my lips, two black eyes, a dislodged jaw, some loose teeth, severe swelling where they hit me on my cheek, and scrapes and bruises on my head."
Detectives say Brad Forkner and Christopher Rosevear were walking hand-in-hand Sunday evening in Waterfront Park and then headed over the Hawthorne Bridge. As the pair walked, police say, they noticed several men behind them who were talking, laughing and pointing, but they weren’t sure if it was directed at them. Police say the attack happened as Forkner and Rosevear walked from the bridge to the trail toward the East Bank Esplanade. The pair told officers the men pushed and punched Forkner before he managed to break away and call 911. Police say the attackers hit Rosevear in the head, face, back and ribs before running off. ”It’s too bad that people are still walking around a city like Portland feeling, well, actually unsafe,” says Paul Fukui, the operations manager of the Q-Center, which advocates for the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered community.
According to the above-linked news story, several witnesses observed the attack but did nothing to help. The three assailants are described as white men in their 20s.
El Paso police have arrested a third suspect in the beating of a 22 year-old Texas man, who remains in critical condition more than two weeks after six men assaulted him with a baseball bat outside the popular El Paso gay nightclub, Old Plantation.
The El Paso Police Department's Intelligence Unit has arrested and charged a 17-year-old male in the aggravated assault that occurred outside the Old Plantation nightclub on May 7. He is the second person arrested in the case. A 16-year-old juvenile also has been detained in the case. Ivan Gallardo, 17, of the 900 block of S. Tays, has been charged with Aggravated Assault and booked into the El Paso County Jail on a bond of $50,000.00. Roman Olvera, 19, of the 2200 block of Bassett, has been charged with aggravated assault and booked into the El Paso County Jail on a bond of $50,000. Police had previously detained a 16-year-old boy in the assault of 22-year-old Lionel Martinez outside of the Old Plantation (OP) nightclub. The unnamed juvenile was referred to the Juvenile Probation Department for the offense of aggravated assault.
Police have classified the attack as gang-related, although a witness reported the attackers using anti-gay epithets during the beating. The victim is not gay and reportedly is not involved with gangs.
A 22 year-old man is listed in critical condition today after being beaten by a group of men with a baseball bat outside the popular El Paso nightclub, Old Plantation. Media reports are light with details so far, but two JMG readers from Texas have written to say the attack was a gay bashing.
Police said the man was waiting for a ride outside the Old Plantation Night Club, 301 S. Ochoa, when a verbal confrontation began between the victim and six other males. The verbal confrontation became physical and the six suspects allegedly began punching, kicking the victim. The group allegedly also used a bat to hit the victim. One of the victim's friends, a woman, tried to help and had her vehicle damaged as she tried to do so. A suspect struck her 2003 Jeep Liberty windshield with a bat to stop her from helping the victim. The suspects then fled the area in what appeared to be a van.
Yesterday a 52 year-old gay man suffered grievous facial injuries after a patron at a Shreveport, Louisiana bar attacked him with a billiards cue stick because he is gay. Witnesses say the two men hadn't even spoken before the attack.
Security personnel at the Sandbar held the alleged attacker, William Payne until police arrived. Payne was arrested and charged with attempted 2nd degree murder and the commission of a hate crime. "It was totally 100 percent a hate crime for this sexual orientation," said Sandbar manager Tim Huck. The bar provided police with video surveillance. Huck says it's disturbing, and shows Payne who is a large man, breaking the cue stick over victim John Skaggs' face with one powerful blow. "His hand was all the way back, and he's swinging like a baseball bat, after three aggressive steps in," said Huck. Shreveport police believe that the video will be powerful evidence of the alleged attack, and management at the Sandbar believes it will also help distinguish between a crime and a hate crime. "At no point in time had he talked to the man that attacked him, bumped him. After watching the video and from witnesses they hadn't even made any form of eye contact or anything," said Huck.
The bar manager says the victim was a regular patron who "never bothers anyone."
Canadian police are investigating the gay-bashing of a British Columbia man who was brutally beaten last month while he and a friend enjoyed a rural natural hot spring.
The victim was relaxing in the hot pool with his companion, both men from Burnaby, when they were joined by two other men and a woman. The man who identified himself as ‘Terry’ discovered the men were homosexual and allegedly told his friends he was going to kill them. As one man ran from the pool to hide, the other man was viciously beaten as he begged for mercy, suffering cuts and bruising to most of his body. He was left injured in the snow as the suspect and his two friends left on snow mobiles.
The suspect is believed to be from Calgary. According to the above-linked story, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police describe the attack as a "crime of ignorance."
Daniel Rodriguez, 22, was yesterday sentenced to twelve years in prison for the brutal October 2009 gay bashing of Queens resident Jack Price, who spent days in a medically-induced coma after suffering two collapsed lungs, multiple broken ribs, spleen and liver damage. Rodriguez and his accomplice Daniel Aleman, 27, were captured on security cameras as they beat and kicked Price while shouting anti-gay slurs. Last month Aleman was sentenced to eight years in prison. Both men were convicted on hate crimes charges.
Brandon Sanchez, 21, has been sentenced to four years in an Oregon prison after attacking another man for having a supposedly "gay hairstyle."
Sanchez apparently targeted Mark Bryant, 20, because he showed up at an Aug. 11 party with his hair gelled into a faux hawk, or fake mohawk. Bryant was in a coma for 22 days, had part of his skull temporarily removed to relieve pressure on his brain from swelling and now -- five months after the attack -- wears a patch over his right eye because he can't see clearly out of it. In recent weeks, he's started to walk again. "I'd never wish this upon anyone," Sanchez said. "I'm sorry for all the pain I've caused in your family. ...I've been praying for you." Bryant then asked something he's always wondered about the attack: "Your honor, I have a question he never answered before: Why?" "I was stupid," Sanchez responded. "I wish I could tell you an answer."
On Christmas night two gay men were attacked outside an Austin, Texas gay bar as dozens of onlookers did nothing. The victims say that responding police seemed indifferent to the attack.
Two men charged in the brutal October 2009 gay-bashing of Queens resident Jack Price have pleaded guilty to hate crimes. Price, 49, spent days in a medically-induced coma after the attack left him with collapsed lungs, multiple broken ribs, and liver and spleen damage.
Daniel Rodriguez, 22, of 502 115th St. in College Point, pleaded guilty Tuesday to one count of first-degree robbery as a hate crime for the Oct. 8, 2009, robbery of Jack Price, 50, after he exited a neighborhood deli, according to Queens District Attorney Richard Brown. “Today’s guilty plea ensures that the victim of a crime motivated by hate will receive justice,” Brown said. “The defendant is expected to be sentenced to a term of imprisonment that will serve as both a punishment for his actions and a deterrent to those who would commit hate crimes, whether they be motivated by gender, religion, sexual orientation or ethnicity.” In exchange for the plea, Queens Supreme Court Justice Barry Kron promised Rodriguez a sentence of between eight and 12 years in prison and post-release supervision. Rodriguez’s co-defendant, Daniel Aleman, 27, of 18-04 College Point Blvd. in College Point, pleaded guilty to first-degree robbery as a hate crime Nov. 23. He is expected to be sentenced to eight years in prison and five years’ post-release supervision Dec. 13. Rodriguez is slated to be sentenced Jan. 21.
Readers of this blog may recall that when we attended the vigil for Price at the scene of the attack in Queens, we were dumbfounded to be faced down by a chanting pro-hate crimes group of local thugs, some of whom found JMG postings about the attack and left threatening comments. I'm not crazy about a plea deal in which these losers get a mere eight years in prison for an attack that put somebody on life support, but today we do have some justice for Jack Price.
VIDEO: It's very hard to watch, but here's the security video that closed the prison doors on these two scumbags.
Yesterday a grand jury returned hate crimes indictments for three members of the Latin Kings Goonies gang, who are accused in a brutal gay bashing in the Bronx that took place earlier this month.
Elmer Cofresi, 23, Nelson Falu,17, and Ruddy Vargas, 22, are charged with multiple hate crimes in the anti-gay gang assault this month. Seven alleged members of a homophobic gang known as the Latin Kings Goonies have been charged in the brutal robbery and assault, during which two men were sodomized with wooden objects. Four teens originally charged in the case were released following an investigation by the Bronx district attorney's office.
All of the suspects will be back in court on November 23rd for the setting of their trial dates.
Yesterday ten members of the Latin King Goonies gang pleaded not guilty to the brutal gay-bashings of three men in the Bronx.
The 10 men appeared one by one before a judge in the Bronx as prosecutors said they were ready to present evidence to indict them on various charges including assault, sexual abuse and harassment, all as hate crimes. Authorities say the Oct. 3 attacks at a Bronx home were touched off because gang members thought one of their recruits was gay. A 17-year-old was beaten and sodomized with a plunger handle, police say. Another 17-year-old also thought to be gay was attacked, and a 30-year-old and his brother were beaten as well. Their laywers said they are innocent. "Please stop running to judgment," said Sanders Dennis, attorney for alleged ringleader Idelfonzo Mendez. "Stop making him a monster. Let the system play it out." Defendant Ruddy Vargas-Perez [photo below] is "absolutely distraught," said his lawyer, Benjamin Heinrich. "Ruddy is as appalled as everyone else." Vargas-Perez, who is out on bail, left the courtroom surrounded by family and friends. His lawyer prevented him from talking to reporters. "Ruddy is a working man" with a job in construction, Heinrich said. "He pays his taxes."
Three Long Island high school students have been arrested for stomping and kicking a 14 year-old boy while screaming anti-gay epithets at him.
Nassau County Police say on Tuesday at 2:15 p.m., 18-year-old David Spencer of North Valley Stream; 16-year-old Chase Morrison of Lakeview; and 14-year-old Roy Wilson of Baldwin assaulted their 14-year-old classmate on a bus leaving the Nassau BOCES Career Preparatory High School in Hicksville. Spencer and Morrison threw insults at the victim for his sexual orientation while they and Wilson beat the boy up. The victim was stomped and kicked on his arms, legs, stomach and thighs. He also suffered a visible bruise on his forearms and pain throughout his body. On the bus ride to school the following morning on Wednesday at 7:20 a.m., the Spencer and Morrison once again insulted the victim for being gay. This time, they slapped him across the face and on the head.
Last night the three boys were charged with assault and harassment. They will be arraigned today.
UPDATE: Prosecutors have charged the trio with assault as a hate crime.
Ruddy Vargas-Perez had been sought since shortly after he and eight other gang members allegedly attacked a 30-year-old man and two teenage boys on Oct. 3-4 in the Morris Heights section of The Bronx. Vargas-Perez, 22, was the target of a citywide dragnet after he failed to surrender on Friday. Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said yesterday he again promised to turn himself in today. But Vargas-Perez was picked up yesterday afternoon at a Richman Plaza address and charged with assault, robbery and burglary as hate crimes and aggravated sex abuse and unlawful imprisonment. Cops went to his Bronx hideout after receiving a tip.
On Sunday the eight other suspects were arraigned on charges of hate crimes, sexual abuse, robbery and other crimes.
Serbian riot battled hundreds of neo-Nazi anti-gay rioters at Belgrade Pride today, fighting back against hurled Molotov cocktails with stun grenades. Over 100 injuries were reported and almost 200 rioters were arrested.
Thousands of police officers sealed off the streets in the capital where the march took place, repeatedly clashing at several locations with rioters who were trying to burst through security cordons. Several parked cars were set on fire or damaged, shop windows were broken, garbage containers were overturned and streets signs destroyed. Several shops were looted before police restored peace late afternoon. The anti-gay rioters also fired shots and threw Molotov cocktails at the headquarters of the ruling pro-Western Democratic Party, setting the garage of the building on fire. The state TV building and other political parties headquarters were also attacked, with many of the house windows shattered by stones. The protesters, chanting "death to homosexuals!" hurled bricks, stones, glass bottles and stun grenades at riot police. Police responded by firing tear gas and deploying armored vehicles to disperse the charging protesters in the heart of the capital even after the brief pride march ended.
The president of Serbia denounced the attacks, saying, "Serbia will guarantee human rights for all its citizens, regardless of the differences among them, and no attempts to revoke these freedoms with violence will be allowed." Serbia's Minister of Justice said that those arrested face up to eight years in prison. Early reports don't indicate whether any of Belgrade Pride's attendees were injured. Last year's pride parade was canceled over the threat of violence.
New York City police have arrested seven gang members who lured a gay man and two teenagers to a house in the Bronx where the victims were brutally tortured. Two other members of the gang are still at large.
There were nine attackers, ranging from 16 to 23 years old and calling themselves the Latin King Goonies, the police said. Before setting upon their 30-year-old victim, they had snatched up two teenage boys whom they beat, the police said — until the boys — one of whom was sodomized with a plunger — admitted to having had sex with the man. The attackers forced the man to strip to his underwear and tied him to a chair, the police said. One of the teenage victims was still there, and the “Goonies” ordered him to attack the man.
The teenager hit him in the face and burned him with a cigarette on his nipple and penis as the others jeered and shouted gay slurs, the police said. Then the attackers whipped the man with a chain and sodomized him with a small baseball bat. The beatings and robberies went on for hours. They were followed by a remarkably thorough attempt to sanitize the house — including pouring bleach down drains, the police said, as little by little word of the attacks trickled to the police. A crucial clue to the attackers was provided by someone who slipped a note to a police officer outside the crime scene, at 1910 Osborne Place in Morris Heights, near Bronx Community College.
Read the New York Timescomplete accounting of the attacks and the investigation.
REACTIONS
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand
"The malicious hate crime that took place in the Bronx is an atrocity. We all must come together and condemn this horrible act. My thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their loved ones, and with all the people of this community that were targeted by this evil assault. “The predators sought to invoke fear and panic among all of us and we will not allow that. Whether because of race, gender, religion or sexual orientation, a crime such as this victimizes every one of us. I know that law enforcement will continue to build a strong case and ensure the maximum punishment for this type of crime."
Human Rights Campaign
“It is tragic to see what hate can do. These three men were brutally attacked and sodomized simply for who they are. Authorities must vigorously prosecute the perpetrators of these hateful crimes. Unfortunately, these crimes come on the heels of several other recently reported hate crimes in New York City. These crimes only emphasize the need for strong federal and state hate crimes laws.”
UPDATE: The families of the Stonewall attackers are rushing to their defense.
In an interview with The Daily News, Orlando's dad swore his 17-year-old boy was no bigot and wants to apologize "in person" to Carver. "We are a working class family," Don Orlando said outside his Staten Island home Tuesday. "We don't hate anyone here." What Orlando did was "wrong," his father added. "I'm not going to sugarcoat what happened," he said. "It was a bar fight, but I swear on my life it's not about Gays or race or any of that. We don't care about any of that stuff in this family." Had there been "an elephant" in the bathroom, "there probably would have been swings at the elephant," Don Orlando said.
The 57-year-old landscaper spoke out a day after his son and Francis, 21, who is also from Staten Island, were charged with assault as a hate crime and attempted robbery. It was not their first brush with the law. Orlando has a juvenile arrest for disorderly conduct. Francis has convictions for disorderly conduct, pot and weapons possession, but hasn't done any time in state prison, records show. "Why do people keep saying this is a hate crime?" Francis' girlfriend, Nancy Casabona, told The News. "Where's the hate? This is not a hate crime. He has a sister who is a lesbian." Francis' sister, Deanna Francis, who is indeed a lesbian, lashed out at Orlando's lawyer for suggesting Francis instigated the attack. "It takes two to tango," she said. "My brother isn't the only one at fault here. There is a lot more to this story."
Police report that the two attackers are blaming each other for the assault.
The NYC Anti-Violence Project will hold a vigil tonight at the Chelsea location of this weekend's brutal attack against a group of gay men. Facebook event page here.
“We will not allow perpetrators of anti-LGBTQ violence to come into our communities and target us. Today we send a strong message that our communities will not be intimidated by this violence and that we will stand up in the face of it and demand equality and respect. This is a wake-up call for every New Yorkers. We all have a responsibility to end this culture of violence against LGBTQ people, which has become so apparent in recent weeks.” AVP is working with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, the NYPD, the office of New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, and other City Council leaders on both of these incidents.
Meet tonight at the corner of 9th Avenue and W.25th Street at 6pm. Important: "AVP encourages you to report any anti-LGBTQ bias, including hate speech, bullying, harassment, and physical violence, to our 24-hour bilingual (English/Spanish) hotline at 212-714-1141 where you can speak with a trained counselor and seek the support you need."
RELATED: The 2010 Anti-Violence Project Courage Awards take place Monday, October 18th. Get tickets here.
Gay bashing incidents were reported in two Manhattan gayborhoods over the weekend, including one that actually took place inside the historic Stonewall Inn.
Two Staten Island men were accused of pummeling Benjamin Carver, 34, early Sunday at the West Village bar known as the birthplace of the gay-rights movement. The battered Carver of Washington D.C., fought back and later identified Matthew Francis, 21 [pictured], and Christopher Orlando, 17, as the thugs who attacked him in Christopher St. tavern's restroom. "New York, I still love you," Carver wrote on his Facebook page as he was having his wounds stitched up at a hospital. At Francis' arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court Monday, a prosecutor said the suspect started the confrontation while standing next to the victim at the urinals and asking, "What kind of bar is this?" The victim responded, "This is a gay bar." "Get away from me f----t! I don't like gay people. Don't pee next to me," Francis yelled. As Orlando blocked the door, Francis asked Carver for a dollar and then for $20, said Assistant District Attorney Kiran Singh. When Carver refused to fork over the money, Francis and Orlando tackled him and Francis punched him "multiple times" in the face, Singh said.
The second incident took place in Chelsea and actually involved a couple of people with whom I am slightly acquainted.
One man, Andrew Jackson, 20, was charged with multiple counts of assault as a hate crime. In the Chelsea case, a group of men were hugging and kissing one another farewell at 25th Street and Ninth Avenue when Mr. Jackson, with five others, yelled a slur and told them to go home, according to a criminal court complaint. Mr. Jackson and the men he was with, who are still at large, punched the victims, and Mr. Jackson threw a metal garbage can that struck two victims, according to the complaint.
I'm told there's a lot more to the Chelsea incident and I'll update that story when more details are made public.
