BY NICKI MAYO
In the wake of two recently reported assaults against a woman outside a Buffalo gay bar and a gay man outside an area mall, Western New York gay rights leaders are calling for increased charges against violent acts that they deem to be “hate crimes.” Nicki Mayo has details on the ongoing effort.
“No one should have to go through this pain; no one should have to go through this suffering, “said Judy Wright.
The Springville mother held a newspaper article in one hand. She cupped a picture of her son Scott Wright in the opposite.
“No one should have to go through the fear of being attacked,” Judy Wright added.
Wright says pictures of Lindsay Harmon bring back horrific memories of the attack on her son Scott.
Wright says pictures of Lindsay Harmon bring back horrific memories of the attack on her son Scott.
New Years Eve, Harmon was stabbed in the eye outside Roxy’s gay bar in Allentown while her attacker reportedly hurled gay slurs at Lindsay and her friends. That same night, two women used gay slurs during an assault on a man in a parking lot at the Walden Galleria Mall.
Judy Wright says her son Scott was outside a Springville bar back in summer 2008 when Joshua Holts attacked him.
Judy Wright says her son Scott was outside a Springville bar back in summer 2008 when Joshua Holts attacked him.
“They are attempting to repair his lower eyelid. They have to keep taking cartilage out of his ear to build up his eyelid,” Wright said pointing out her son’s injuries.
Holts is charged with second degree assault. Monday gay lesbian bisexual and transgender leaders are joining Wright as she goes before an Erie County Court judge to request a maximum sentence of seven years for Holts.
Holts is charged with second degree assault. Monday gay lesbian bisexual and transgender leaders are joining Wright as she goes before an Erie County Court judge to request a maximum sentence of seven years for Holts.
New York’s Hate Crimes Act raises the level of the charges, if you prove and categorize an attack as a hate crime. Victims’ rights advocates are pushing for more cases of violence against members of the GLBT community to be reported and prosecuted as hate crimes. Many of these cases are listed as an assault when they come to court.
“I personally know of 10 unreported hate crime assaults in the city in the past two months. Why? Because people are frightened to report it,” said Outspoken for Equality President Kitty Lambert.
“Why should they bother reporting it? It won’t be prosecuted as a hate crime,” Lambert added.
“Nobody knows, our elected officials don’t know. The police can’t accurately say how many hate crimes and biased crimes there are because they are not counting them,” said Paul Morgan with the Stonewall Democrats of Western New York.
Judy Wright says it’s time for law enforcement to start labeling crimes targeting GLBT victims as hate crimes.
“When someone is chasing you across the street as they did Scott and calling him ‘f*****’ before he was hit from behind. I don’t know how you can call it anything but that.”
