Tag: LGBT violence

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San Francisco: Two Violent Attacks On Gay Men Days Before Pride Weekend

Tim Tait of San Francisco was attacked while walking home
Tim Tait of San Francisco

Two men in the San Francisco area were separately attacked on the same night. The violent beatings have left police in both Oakland and San Francisco searching for answers.

According to the local ABC affiliate, the beatings of two Bay Area men have police in Oakland and San Francisco baffled as they search for motives.

Tim Tait of San Francisco was stunned to be attacked in San Francisco in the year 2018.

“San Francisco, 2018 – there is so much diversity and so much acceptance and this is still happening,” said Tait.

He was targeted because he’s a drag queen who goes by the name “Ginger Snap.”

Tait left the Eagle Bar at South of Market at around 10 o’clock, also on June 9. After making a left on Bernice Street to go home, Tait felt a blow to his head.

“Got about one-quarter of the way down the block when I felt a bang to the head and started to get attacked,” says Tait. During the beating Tait was punched, kicked and dragged.

Officer Joseph Tomlinson with the San Francisco Police Department says surveillance camera video has been found and is being reviewed for any details that may help identify the attacker.

San Francisco Police are treating the attack as a hate crime.

Scott Long of Oakland, California, was beaten with a tire iron from behind

Scott Long of Oakland, California

Scott Long, a human rights activist on LGBTQ issues in Oakland, was struck from behind with what he thinks was a tire iron on June 9, near the corner of 35th Avenue and Kansas Street in Oakland.

“I suddenly felt this huge blow right upside my head over my ear,” says Long. His injuries were so severe he had to have surgery to reconstruct his jaw and cheekbone.

Describing his assailant as “very thin white male, shorter than he,” Long recalls being struck at least four times.

Long has no clue as to why he was attacked. Oakland Police continue to followup on the investigation.

With Pride Weekend beginning tomorrow, Robert Rueca of the San Francisco Police Department is recommending that people travel in groups.

“If you have the ability to move with a group, absolutely do so,” said Rueca.

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Denver: Gay Couple Attacked & Stabbed In Late Night Hate Crime

Christopher Huizar visits his boyfriend Gabriel Roman in the hospital after being attacked and stabbed for holding hands in public
Image via GoFundMe

A gay couple was attacked and stabbed apparently for holding hands in public in a hate crime on Saturday night in Denver, Colorado.

Christopher Giovanni Huizar, 19, and Gabriel Enrique Roman, 23, were walking to their downtown home after spending the evening at the Church Nightclub when a man screamed “fucking faggots” at the men.

Huizar says he felt a “punch” only to discover he’d been stabbed in the neck. Roman jumped in to protect his boyfriend and was stabbed in his hand.

The couple began to run from the attacker, but Roman was stabbed again, this time in the back.

After escaping the attacker, the two men collapsed against the side of a building crying and bleeding.

“I was just worried about my boyfriend because he bled so much,” said Huizar.

Eventually a pair of passersby found the couple and called for emergency services.

At the hospital, Roman’s injuries required 30 internal stitches and 52 stitches on his hand.

The men told the local NBC affiliate that the attack will only strengthen their relationship. “We are not letting his define us. We love each other and wouldn’t want this to happen to anyone else,” said Huizar.

According to Denver Police, a man has been arrested for the crime and is being held on charges of aggravated assault. Police say the attack is being investigated as a hate crime.

The couple, who will celebrate their first year together on Wednesday, have set up a GoFundMe campaign to help pay for their extensive medical bills and lost wages work.

Watch the report from NBC 9News below.

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Ohio: Convicted Murderer Attempts To Escape Execution Via “Gay Panic” Defense

Back in 1985, Robert Van Hook, pictured left, strangled and stabbed 25-year-old David Self to death in Cincinnati, before stealing some of his belongings and fleeing. He is currently scheduled to be executed on July 18.

Van Hook is now attempting to claim “gay panic” as a defense for his actions in order to save his life.

Prosecutors call the ploy “nonsense,” pointing out it fit into a well established pattern of behavior.

“This is a man who had cynically manipulated homosexuals for years. He posed as a gay [man]; he frequented bars that were gay and he preyed on vulnerable victims who were gay,” the Hamilton County prosecutor’s office said in a filing with the board.

Van Hook’s attorneys say their client was suffering from the effects of abuse he experienced as a child They add he was “troubled by increasing questions about his own sexual identity.”

Currently, two states have laws banning gay or trans panic defenses: Illinois and California.

Last month, James Miller of Texas, successfully used the strategy to avoid a prison.

Miller said he stabbed his neighbor, Daniel Spencer, after he had tried to kiss him.

Miller was sentenced to only ten years probation after being found guilty of criminally negligent homicide.

Think on that for a while…

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Two Teens Get Slap On The Wrist After Choking A Student Into “Apologizing” For Being Gay

Will Mayrick (image via Facebook)

Two teens in the UK, who choked a student during a Tube ride in London until he “apologized” for being gay, have basically walked out of court with a slap on the wrist.

Will Mayrick, 20, says he feared for his life after two attackers grabbed him in a headlock, squeezing the breathe out of him, during an evening out with four of his friends.

The photography student today said the hideous ordeal might never have happened if the teenage perpetrators had undergone LGBT education classes at school.

Mayrick told the press that the Government needs to make LGBT studies a requirement. “It’s clear that there needs to be a better support network in schools,” he told the Evening Standard.

In the end, both attackers (aged 16 and 17) were given 12-month referral orders and each ordered to pay fines of about $27 for “victim surcharge” and $200 for “compensation.”

After the sentencing, Mayrick withheld judgement of his assailants saying, “They were so young, and I can’t help but think that if they had had some sort LGBT education then the attack might never have happened.”

According to a recent study by Stonewall, 55% of secondary school teachers and 42% of primary school teachers say they don’t stand up to homophobic language every time they hear it.

Additionally, 86% of secondary school teachers and 45% of primary school teachers polled said students in their schools had experienced homophobic bullying.

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Miami Beach Pride Attackers Officially Charged With Hate Crime

The four Miami Beach gay bashers

Back in April, I reported on a violent anti-LGBT attack on a gay couple that occurred in Miami Beach shortly after the city’s Pride Parade.

The couple, Dmitry Logunov and Rene Chalarca, were violently beaten by four men.

In addition, Helmut Muller Estrada, a good samaritan who jumped in trying to stop the attack, was also severely injured requiring a hospital visit.

The couple said they were targeted because of their sexual orientation.

Which brings me to today’s news as The Miami Herald is reporting the four attackers have been charged with aggravated battery committed with prejudice. That means the police now officially view the attack as a hate crime.

If convicted each of the men – Pablo Reinaldo Romo-Figueroa, 21, Luis Alonso-Piovet, 20, Juan C. Lopez, 21, and Adonis Diaz, 21 – could face up to 30 years in prison.

The attackers turned themselves in shortly after social media folks spread video and surveillance photos far and wide.

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Miami Beach Gay Bashers Charged With Aggravated Felony Battery

Four men accused of a violent gay bashing after Miami Beach Pride this past Sunday have been released on bond after being arrested and charged with felony aggravated battery.

Miami’s local ABC affiliate WSVN reports that the young men accused of a violent gay bashing after Miami Beach Pride this past Sunday have been released on bond after being arrested and charged with felony aggravated battery.

The four men — who police identified as 20-year-old Luis Alonso, 21-year-old Adonis Diaz, 21-year-old Juan C. Lopez and 21-year-old Pablo Reinaldo Romo — bonded out of jail on Wednesday. According to a Miami Beach Police spokesperson, all four men are facing aggravated battery felony charges.

Each of the four men were being held on $7,500 bond.

Surveillance cameras outside the Miami Beach bathroom, located near the beach along Ocean Drive and Sixth Street, recorded the assault on Sunday night.

Investigators said the subjects yelled an anti-gay slur in Spanish before the brawl ensued.

The State Attorney’s Office is still deciding whether the suspects will be charged with a hate crime.

You can find my original reports on the attack here and here.

Florida State Attorney Kathy Rundle promises all hate crime aspects of the attack will be evaluated throughly.

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Miami Beach Gay Bashers Surrender To Police

The four men arrested for violent post-Pride hate crime on Sunday

The Miami Beach Police Department announced this evening that the four men caught on surveillance video violently attacking two gay men after the city’s Pride Parade on Sunday afternoon have turned themselves in through an attorney.

The four men – identified as Juan C. Lopez, Adonis Diaz, Pablo Reinaldo Romo, all 21, and Luis M. Alonso, 20 – will likely face felony assault charges.

According to reports earlier today, the police were considering the attack a hate crime as at least one of the assailants used the Spanish word for “faggot” as punches were thrown.

The victims, Rene Chalarca and Dmitry Logunov, attempted to escape but were chased by the four attackers. A passerby who witnessed the attack tried to stop the men but was beaten and left bloody himself with several cuts and bruises needing medical attention.

Unfortunately, with the news of the arrests also comes disturbing reports about the anti-gay attitude of the Miami Beach Police officers who answered the call.

From South Florida Gay News:

At one point a female officer told Logunov to “stop the drama, shut the fuck up.” Another officer repeated that to him a few minutes later. One of the officers also told him to “put ice on your face at home and you’ll be alright.”

“This is a terrible crime, as such, we are dedicating our full efforts to capturing the attackers. The Miami Beach Police Department prides itself on its inclusion of everyone,” a spokesperson for the Miami Beach Police Department said. “If anyone feels mistreated by any of our officers, they are encouraged to contact MBPD’s Internal Affairs unit so that any complaint can be addressed immediately.”

Miami Beach City Commissioner Michael Gongora also weighed in saying “I am disturbed by this and have sent to the Police Chief for investigation. Being Miami Beach’s first and only openly gay commissioner it’s important to me that our community be safe and treated well – especially during Gay Pride.”

Later after an ambulance arrived the paramedics treated the couple at the scene and also told them they’d be OK and to just go home, put ice on their faces, or they could pay $800 and go to the hospital.

The paramedics, though, were wrong.

Later the couple decided to go to the hospital on their own, where it was discovered Chalarca had a broken tear duct and was told to try not to cry or get emotional. He may need surgery.

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Miami Beach: Two Gay Men Violently Attacked In Hate Crime After Pride Parade

Surveillance photo of hate crime attackers
Click image to enlarge

Two gay men were the victims of a violent hate crime on Sunday evening in Miami Beach following the city’s Pride Parade.

From The Miami Herald:

In video footage of the incident, four young men — one wearing a Florida International University T-shirt — are seen walking up to a bathroom area on Ocean Drive and Sixth Street at about 7:40 p.m. Sunday. Two other men walk out, and are immediately attacked by the four. One of the attackers shouts a Spanish slur used to refer to LGBT men before he and the other attackers begin repeatedly punching the two men.

When the two victims, who sustained multiple injuries to their faces, began to run away, the attackers chased them, Miami Beach police said.

One of the victims told NBC 6 News that he and his partner were holding hands when they were attacked.

“For me, the way we were dressed and everything and we were together, for me it was like, yes, it was a hate crime,” he said.

Police are asking for help to identify the men involved in the attack. Three are described as Hispanic white males, each about 5 foot 8, and between the ages of 19 and 24. Anyone with information should call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS.

A bystander, 29-year-old Helmut Muller, tried to intervene and stop the attack but the attackers turned on him knocking him out cold. Muller woke up in a pool of his own blood and eventually spent six hours at the hospital getting staples in his head to stop the bleeding.

The attackers now face felony battery charges. As mentioned above, if anyone has any info that could lead to the arrest of the men, please call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS.

You can see surveillance footage of the attack in the two local news reports below.

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Judge Denies Request To Move Trial Of Pulse Nightclub Shooter’s Widow

The widow of the Pulse Nightclub shooter, who killed 49 people at an Orlando, Florida, nightclub in June of 2016, has seen her request for a change of venue for her upcoming trial denied.

Via The New York Times:

U.S. District Judge Paul Byron ruled Wednesday that attorneys for Noor Salman did not prove that she cannot get a fair trial in Orlando. Salman was married to Omar Mateen, who died in a shootout with police at Orlando’s Pulse nightclub in June 2016.

Prosecutors charged Salman with obstruction of justice, saying she knew of her husband’s plans. She denies that.

Her trial is set for March.

Salman’s attorneys argued she could not get a fair trial in Orlando because of constant media coverage and statements made by the Orlando Police chief. But the judge concluded those statements were not inflammatory or prejudicial.

Until the recent shooting in Las Vegas, the Pulse massacre was the deadliest shooting event in American history.

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Russia: Number Of LGBT Hate Crimes Doubles In Five Years After Passage Of ‘Gay Propaganda’ Law

By Rama – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0 fr, Link

In only five years, the number of hate crimes committed against gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people in Russia has doubled.

During that time Russian’s ‘gay propaganda’ law was signed into law by President Vladimir Putin in June of 2013 as a tool to halt gay pride parades and harass LGBT activists.

Svetlana Zakharova, a board member with the prominent gay rights organization Russian LGBT Network, says “(Offenders) have become more aggressive and less fearful.”

“It seems to them that, to some extent, the government supports their actions. Many perpetrators openly talk about their crimes as noble deeds.”

Frighteningly, of 250 crimes that were examined, 200 were murders.

Researching records and data from judicial watchdog RosPravosudie, the number of sentences for crimes against LGBT people increased from 18 in 2010 to 65 in 2015.

Experts say the statistics don’t reveal a full picture of the animus shown LGBTs as many hate crimes are not reported, investigated or prosecuted.

Russia was ranked second to last on a list of Europe’s LGBT-friendly nations in 2016 by ILGA-Europe, a network of European LGBT groups. Only Azerbaijan scored worse than Russia.

(source)